As Bristow Group Inc.'s (NYSE:VTOL) market cap increased US$82m, insiders who bought last year may be reflecting on buying more
Insiders who bought Bristow Group Inc. (NYSE:VTOL) stock in the last 12 months were richly rewarded last week. The company's market value increased by US$82m as a result of the stock's 12% gain over the same period. As a result, the stock they originally bought for US$231k is now worth US$280k.
While we would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.
View our latest analysis for Bristow Group
The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Bristow Group
The Senior VP, Crystal Gordon, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$201k worth of shares at a price of US$27.39 each. That means that even when the share price was below the current price of US$27.99, an insider wanted to cash in some shares. When an insider sells below the current price, it suggests that they considered that lower price to be fair. That makes us wonder what they think of the (higher) recent valuation. However, while insider selling is sometimes discouraging, it's only a weak signal. We note that the biggest single sale was only 22% of Crystal Gordon's holding. The only individual insider seller over the last year was Crystal Gordon.
In the last twelve months insiders purchased 10.00k shares for US$231k. But they sold 7.33k shares for US$201k. Overall, Bristow Group insiders were net buyers during the last year. Their average price was about US$23.12. To my mind it is good that insiders have invested their own money in the company. However, we do note that they were buying at significantly lower prices than today's share price. 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!
Bristow Group is not the only stock insiders are buying. So take a peek at this free list of growing companies with insider buying.
Insiders at Bristow Group Have Sold Stock Recently
We've seen more insider selling than insider buying at Bristow Group recently. We note Senior VP Crystal Gordon cashed in US$201k worth of shares. On the other hand we note Independent Director Robert Manzo bought US$134k worth of shares. Since the selling really does outweigh the buying, we'd say that these transactions may suggest that some insiders feel the shares are not cheap.
Does Bristow Group Boast High 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. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. It appears that Bristow Group insiders own 2.1% of the company, worth about US$16m. We've certainly seen higher levels of insider ownership elsewhere, but these holdings are enough to suggest alignment between insiders and the other shareholders.
So What Do The Bristow Group Insider Transactions Indicate?
The insider sales have outweighed the insider buying, at Bristow Group, in the last three months. On the other hand, the insider transactions over the last year are encouraging. And insiders do own shares. So we're not overly bothered by recent selling. While we like knowing what's going on with the insider's ownership and transactions, we make sure to also consider what risks are facing a stock before making any investment decision. To assist with this, we've discovered 1 warning sign that you should run your eye over to get a better picture of Bristow Group.
But note: Bristow Group 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, but not derivative transactions.
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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