Insiders who bought Altair Minerals Limited (ASX:ALR) stock in the last 12 months were richly rewarded last week. The company's market value increased by AU$40m as a result of the stock's 15% gain over the same period. As a result, the stock they originally bought for AU$199.9k is now worth AU$2.30m.
While we would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing, logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares.
Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by insider Bilal Ahmad for AU$150k worth of shares, at about AU$0.004 per share. Even though the purchase was made at a significantly lower price than the recent price (AU$0.046), we still think insider buying is a positive. Because the shares were purchased at a lower price, this particular buy doesn't tell us much about how insiders feel about the current share price.
In the last twelve months Altair Minerals insiders were buying shares, but not selling. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!
View our latest analysis for Altair Minerals
Altair Minerals is not the only stock insiders are buying. So take a peek at this free list of under-the-radar companies with insider buying.
Looking at the total insider shareholdings in a company can help to inform your view of whether they are well aligned with common shareholders. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. It appears that Altair Minerals insiders own 34% of the company, worth about AU$105m. We've certainly seen higher levels of insider ownership elsewhere, but these holdings are enough to suggest alignment between insiders and the other shareholders.
There haven't been any insider transactions in the last three months -- that doesn't mean much. However, our analysis of transactions over the last year is heartening. With high insider ownership and encouraging transactions, it seems like Altair Minerals insiders think the business has merit. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Altair Minerals. In terms of investment risks, we've identified 3 warning signs with Altair Minerals and understanding these should be part of your investment process.
But note: Altair Minerals 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.