Did Auris Minerals Limited (ASX:AUR) Insiders Buy Up More Shares?
It is not uncommon to see companies perform well in the years after insiders buy shares. Unfortunately, there are also plenty of examples of share prices declining precipitously after insiders have sold shares. So shareholders might well want to know whether insiders have been buying or selling shares in Auris Minerals Limited (ASX:AUR).
What Is Insider Buying?
It is perfectly legal for company insiders, including board members, to buy and sell stock in a company. However, rules govern insider transactions, and certain disclosures are required.
We would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing. But logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares. For example, a Colombia University study found that ‘insiders are more likely to engage in open market purchases of their own company’s stock when the firm is about to reveal new agreements with customers and suppliers’.
View our latest analysis for Auris Minerals
Auris Minerals Insider Transactions Over The Last Year
In the last twelve months, the biggest single purchase by an insider was when Non-Executive Director Robert Martin bought AU$1.2m worth of shares at a price of AU$0.056 per share. That means that an insider was happy to buy shares at above the current price. 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 generally consider it a positive if insiders have been buying on market, even above the current price.
Happily, we note that in the last year insiders bought 30.05m shares for a total of AU$1.9m. In the last twelve months there was more buying than selling by Auris Minerals insiders. The average buy price was around AU$0.063. These transactions suggest that insiders have considered the current price of AU$0.037 attractive. You can see the insider transactions over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!
If you like to buy stocks alongside management, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).
Insider Ownership
Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. Auris Minerals insiders own about AU$1.8m worth of shares (which is 11% of the company). This kind of significant ownership by insiders does generally increase the chance that the company is run in the interest of all shareholders.
So What Does This Data Suggest About Auris Minerals Insiders?
There haven’t been any insider transactions in the last three months — that doesn’t mean much. But insiders have shown more of an appetite for the stock, over the last year. We’d like to see bigger individual holdings. However, we don’t see anything to make us think Auris Minerals insiders are doubting the company. To put this in context, take a look at how a company has performed in the past. You can access this detailed graph of past earnings, revenue and cash flow .
But note: Auris 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.
To help readers see past the short term volatility of the financial market, we aim to bring you a long-term focused research analysis purely driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis does not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements.
The author is an independent contributor and at the time of publication had no position in the stocks mentioned. For errors that warrant correction please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com.
