Insiders who bought AU$288.4k worth of Voltaic Strategic Resources Limited (ASX:VSR) stock in the last year have seen some of their losses recouped as the stock gained 16% last week. The purchase, however, has proven to be a pricey bet, with losses currently totalling AU$84k.
While insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.
In the last twelve months, the biggest single purchase by an insider was when Non-Executive Director Michael Walshe bought AU$100k worth of shares at a price of AU$0.036 per share. That means that even when the share price was higher than AU$0.029 (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. We always take careful note of the price insiders pay when purchasing shares. It is generally more encouraging if they paid above the current price, as it suggests they saw value, even at higher levels.
In the last twelve months Voltaic Strategic Resources insiders were buying shares, but not selling. The average buy price was around AU$0.041. These transactions suggest that insiders have considered the current price attractive. You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by companies and 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!
View our latest analysis for Voltaic Strategic Resources
There are always plenty of stocks that insiders are buying. If investing in lesser known companies is your style, you could take a look at this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).
Another way to test the alignment between the leaders of a company and other shareholders is to look at how many shares they own. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. It appears that Voltaic Strategic Resources insiders own 23% of the company, worth about AU$3.8m. This level of insider ownership is good but just short of being particularly stand-out. It certainly does suggest a reasonable degree of alignment.
It doesn't really mean much that no insider has traded Voltaic Strategic Resources shares in the last quarter. However, our analysis of transactions over the last year is heartening. Overall we don't see anything to make us think Voltaic Strategic Resources insiders are doubting the company, and they do own shares. So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. For instance, we've identified 4 warning signs for Voltaic Strategic Resources (2 make us uncomfortable) you should be aware of.
But note: Voltaic Strategic Resources may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list 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.
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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.