We've lost count of how many times insiders have accumulated shares in a company that goes on to improve markedly. On the other hand, we'd be remiss not to mention that insider sales have been known to precede tough periods for a business. So before you buy or sell China Gem Holdings Limited (HKG:1191), you may well want to know whether insiders have been buying or selling.

Do Insider Transactions Matter?

It is perfectly legal for company insiders, including board members, to buy and sell stock in a company. However, such insiders must disclose their trading activities, and not trade on inside information.

Insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing. But equally, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether. As Peter Lynch said, 'insiders might sell their shares for any number of reasons, but they buy them for only one: they think the price will rise.

Check out our latest analysis for China Gem Holdings

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At China Gem Holdings

In the last twelve months, the biggest single purchase by an insider was when insider Jieshan Liu bought HK$1.9m worth of shares at a price of HK$0.11 per share. That means that even when the share price was higher than HK$0.074 (the recent price), an insider wanted to purchase shares. While their view may have changed since the purchase was made, this does at least suggest they have had confidence in the company's future. To us, it's very important to consider the price insiders pay for shares. As a general rule, we feel more positive about a stock if insiders have bought shares at above current prices, because that suggests they viewed the stock as good value, even at a higher price.

In the last twelve months China Gem Holdings insiders were buying shares, but not selling. You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by individuals) over the last 12 months, below. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

China Gem Holdings is not the only stock that insiders are buying. For those who like to find winning investments this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

Does China Gem Holdings Boast High Insider Ownership?

Another way to test the alignment between the leaders of a company and other shareholders is to look at how many shares they own. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. Our data indicates that China Gem Holdings insiders own about HK$34m worth of shares (which is 11% of the company). However, it's possible that insiders might have an indirect interest through a more complex structure. Whilst better than nothing, we're not overly impressed by these holdings.

So What Do The China Gem Holdings Insider Transactions Indicate?

The fact that there have been no China Gem Holdings insider transactions recently certainly doesn't bother us. But insiders have shown more of an appetite for the stock, over the last year. Insiders do have a stake in China Gem Holdings and their transactions don't cause us concern. Along with insider transactions, I recommend checking if China Gem Holdings is growing revenue. This free chart of historic revenue and earnings should make that easy.

Of course China Gem Holdings may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of high quality companies.

For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions, but not derivative transactions.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.

We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.