Investors who take an interest in Continental Resources, Inc. (NYSE:CLR) should definitely note that the Independent Director, Timothy Taylor, recently paid US$17.00 per share to buy US$101k worth of the stock. That's a very solid buy in our book, and increased their holding by a noteworthy 14%.

Check out our latest analysis for Continental Resources

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Continental Resources

The Founder & Executive Chairman Harold Hamm made the biggest insider purchase in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$57m worth of shares at a price of US$17.01 each. That means that even when the share price was higher than US$16.30 (the recent price), an insider wanted to purchase shares. Their view may have changed since then, but at least it shows they felt optimistic at the time. To us, it's very important to consider the price insiders pay for shares. Generally speaking, it catches our eye when insiders have purchased shares at above current prices, as it suggests they believed the shares were worth buying, even at a higher price.

Continental Resources insiders may have bought shares in the last year, but they didn't sell any. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

Continental Resources 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.

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. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. It's great to see that Continental Resources insiders own 84% of the company, worth about US$4.9b. This kind of significant ownership by insiders does generally increase the chance that the company is run in the interest of all shareholders.

So What Does This Data Suggest About Continental Resources Insiders?

The recent insider purchase is heartening. We also take confidence from the longer term picture of insider transactions. But we don't feel the same about the fact the company is making losses. When combined with notable insider ownership, these factors suggest Continental Resources insiders are well aligned, and quite possibly think the share price is too low. One for the watchlist, at least! In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Continental Resources. At Simply Wall St, we found 2 warning signs for Continental Resources that deserve your attention before buying any shares.

If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity and low debt.

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.

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. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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