Bullish insiders bet €770k on Unilever PLC (LON:ULVR)
Multiple insiders secured a larger position in Unilever PLC (LON:ULVR) shares over the last 12 months. This is reassuring as this suggests that insiders have increased optimism about the company's prospects.
Although we don't think shareholders should simply follow insider transactions, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.
Check out our latest analysis for Unilever
The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Unilever
Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by CFO & Executive Director Graeme Pitkethly for UK£750k worth of shares, at about UK£40.86 per share. That means that even when the share price was higher than UK£33.92 (the recent price), an insider wanted to purchase shares. It's very possible they regret the purchase, but it's more likely they are bullish about the company. We always take careful note of the price insiders pay when purchasing shares. As a general rule, we feel more positive about a stock if insiders have bought shares at above current prices, because that suggests they viewed the stock as good value, even at a higher price.
Unilever insiders may have bought shares in the last year, but they didn't sell any. You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last 12 months, below. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!
There are plenty of other companies that have insiders buying up shares. You probably do not want to miss this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying.
Insiders at Unilever Have Bought Stock Recently
Over the last three months, we've seen a bit of insider buying at Unilever. Independent Non-Executive Director Strive Masiyiwa purchased UK£20k worth of shares in that period. It's great to see that insiders are only buying, not selling. However, in this case the amount invested recently is quite small.
Does Unilever 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. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. Unilever insiders own about UK£35m worth of shares. That equates to 0.04% 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.
What Might The Insider Transactions At Unilever Tell Us?
We note a that there has been a bit of insider buying recently (but no selling). That said, the purchases were not large. On a brighter note, the transactions over the last year are encouraging. Insiders own shares in Unilever and we see no evidence to suggest they are worried about the future. 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. At Simply Wall St, we found 2 warning signs for Unilever that deserve your attention before buying any shares.
Of course Unilever may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of high quality companies.
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.
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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.
