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 we'll take a look at whether insiders have been buying or selling shares in Blackbird plc (LON:BIRD).

Do Insider Transactions Matter?

It's quite normal to see company insiders, such as board members, trading in company stock, from time to time. 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 it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing. For example, a Harvard University study found that 'insider purchases earn abnormal returns of more than 6% per year'.

Check out our latest analysis for Blackbird

Blackbird Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

The Founder, Stephen Streater, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for UK£256k worth of shares at a price of UK£0.14 each. That means that even when the share price was below the current price of UK£0.22, an insider wanted to cash in some shares. We generally consider it a negative if insiders have been selling, especially if they did so below the current price, because it implies that they considered a lower price to be reasonable. While insider selling is not a positive sign, we can't be sure if it does mean insiders think the shares are fully valued, so it's only a weak sign. This single sale was just 2.8% of Stephen Streater's stake. Stephen Streater was the only individual insider to sell over the last year.

In the last twelve months insiders purchased 1.91m shares for UK£270k. But they sold 1.83m shares for UK£256k. In the last twelve months there was more buying than selling by Blackbird insiders. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!

 insider-trading-volume

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

Have Blackbird Insiders Traded Recently?

We saw some Blackbird insider buying shares in the last three months. Chief Operating & Financial Officer and Director Stephen White purchased UK£5.0k worth of shares in that period. It's good to see the insider buying, as well as the lack of recent sellers. But the amount invested in the last three months isn't enough for us too put much weight on it, as a single factor.

Insider Ownership of Blackbird

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. Blackbird insiders own about UK£20m worth of shares. That equates to 26% of the company. While this is a strong but not outstanding level of insider ownership, it's enough to indicate some alignment between management and smaller shareholders.

So What Do The Blackbird Insider Transactions Indicate?

Our data shows a little insider buying, but no selling, in the last three months. Overall the buying isn't worth writing home about. However, our analysis of transactions over the last year is heartening. Insiders own shares in Blackbird and we see no evidence to suggest they are worried about the future. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Blackbird. Case in point: We've spotted 4 warning signs for Blackbird you should be aware of.

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.

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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