Insiders who bought US$3.8m worth of TMT Investments PLC (LON:TMT) stock in the last year have seen some of their losses recouped as the stock gained 14% last week. However, the purchase is proving to be a costly gamble, since losses made by insiders have totalled US$2.1m since the time of purchase.

While insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing, we do think it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing.

View our latest analysis for TMT Investments

TMT Investments Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by Head of Strategy & Director for Strategic Development German Kaplun for US$1.2m worth of shares, at about US$8.50 per share. That means that an insider was happy to buy shares at above the current price of US$3.70. It's very possible they regret the purchase, but it's more likely they are bullish about the company. We always take careful note of the price insiders pay when purchasing 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 TMT Investments insiders were buying shares, but not selling. You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last 12 months, below. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date! insider-trading-volume

There are plenty of other companies that have insiders buying up shares. You probably do not want to miss this freelist of growing companies that insiders are buying.

Insider Ownership

Looking at the total insider shareholdings in a company can help to inform your view of whether they are well aligned with common shareholders. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. It's great to see that TMT Investments insiders own 64% of the company, worth about US$75m. I like to see this level of insider ownership, because it increases the chances that management are thinking about the best interests of shareholders.



What Might The Insider Transactions At TMT Investments Tell Us?

There haven't been any insider transactions in the last three months -- that doesn't mean much. On a brighter note, the transactions over the last year are encouraging. It would be great to see more insider buying, but overall it seems like TMT Investments insiders are reasonably well aligned (owning significant chunk of the company's shares) and optimistic for the future. So while it's helpful to know what insiders are doing in terms of buying or selling, it's also helpful to know the risks that a particular company is facing. Case in point: We've spotted 3 warning signs for TMT Investments you should be aware of, and 1 of them is potentially serious.

If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this freelist 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.

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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.

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