Generally, when a single insider buys stock, it is usually not a big deal. However, when several insiders are buying, like in the case of Inchcape plc (LON:INCH), it sends a favourable message to the company's shareholders.

Although we don't think shareholders should simply follow insider transactions, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.

See our latest analysis for Inchcape

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Inchcape

In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the Group CEO & Director, Duncan Tait, sold UK£323k worth of shares at a price of UK£7.61 per share. While we don't usually like to see insider selling, it's more concerning if the sales take place at a lower price. It's of some comfort that this sale was conducted at a price well above the current share price, which is UK£6.59. So it may not tell us anything about how insiders feel about the current share price. The only individual insider seller over the last year was Duncan Tait.

Over the last year, we can see that insiders have bought 83.46k shares worth UK£557k. But they sold 42.45k shares for UK£323k. In total, Inchcape insiders bought more than they sold over the last year. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below! insider-trading-volume

Inchcape is not the only stock insiders are buying. So take a peek at this freelist of growing companies with insider buying.

Insiders At Inchcape Have Bought Stock Recently

Over the last three months, we've seen significant insider buying at Inchcape. Not only was there no selling that we can see, but they collectively bought UK£302k worth of shares. This is a positive in our book as it implies some confidence.

Does Inchcape Boast High Insider Ownership?

I like to look at how many shares insiders own in a company, to help inform my view of how aligned they are with insiders. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. It appears that Inchcape insiders own 1.8% of the company, worth about UK£50m. While this is a strong but not outstanding level of insider ownership, it's enough to indicate some alignment between management and smaller shareholders.



What Might The Insider Transactions At Inchcape Tell Us?

It's certainly positive to see the recent insider purchases. We also take confidence from the longer term picture of insider transactions. When combined with notable insider ownership, these factors suggest Inchcape insiders are well aligned, and that they may think the share price is too low. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Inchcape. You'd be interested to know, that we found 1 warning sign for Inchcape and we suggest you have a look.

But note: Inchcape may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this freelist of interesting companies with high ROE 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 of direct interests only, but not derivative transactions or indirect interests.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content?Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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.