Semtech Independent Director Rodolpho Cardenuto Sells 100% Of Holding

Some Semtech Corporation (NASDAQ:SMTC) shareholders may be a little concerned to see that the Independent Director, Rodolpho Cardenuto, recently sold a substantial US$878k worth of stock at a price of US$165 per share. That diminished their holding by a very significant 100%, which arguably implies a strong desire to reallocate capital.

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Semtech Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

The President, Hong Hou, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$1.5m worth of shares at a price of US$153 each. So it's clear an insider wanted to take some cash off the table, even below the current price of US$185. As a general rule we consider it to be discouraging when insiders are selling below the current price, because it suggests they were happy with a lower valuation. However, while insider selling is sometimes discouraging, it's only a weak signal. This single sale was just 13% of Hong Hou's stake.

In the last year Semtech insiders didn't buy any company stock. 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!

See our latest analysis for Semtech

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Insider Ownership Of Semtech

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. Insiders own 0.5% of Semtech shares, worth about US$90m. 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 Semtech Insider Transactions Indicate?

Insiders sold stock recently, but they haven't been buying. And even if we look at the last year, we didn't see any purchases. But it is good to see that Semtech is growing earnings. Insiders own shares, but we're still pretty cautious, given the history of sales. So we'd only buy after careful consideration. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Semtech. Case in point: We've spotted 3 warning signs for Semtech you should be aware of.

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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.