Favourable Signals For Enterprise Bancorp: Numerous Insiders Acquired Stock
Generally, when a single insider buys stock, it is usually not a big deal. However, when several insiders are buying, like in the case of Enterprise Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBTC), it sends a favourable message to the company's shareholders.
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.
Check out our latest analysis for Enterprise Bancorp
Enterprise Bancorp Insider Transactions Over The Last Year
In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the Founder & Executive Chairman of the Board, George Duncan, sold US$137k worth of shares at a price of US$34.23 per share. We generally don't like to see insider selling, but the lower the sale price, the more it concerns us. The silver lining is that this sell-down took place above the latest price (US$27.03). So it may not shed much light on insider confidence at current levels.
Over the last year, we can see that insiders have bought 11.08k shares worth US$330k. But they sold 6.20k shares for US$205k. In total, Enterprise Bancorp insiders bought more than they sold over the last year. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!
Enterprise Bancorp is not the only stock insiders are buying. So take a peek at this free list of growing companies with insider buying.
Insiders At Enterprise Bancorp Have Bought Stock Recently
We saw some Enterprise Bancorp insider buying shares in the last three months. insider Michael Putziger bought US$46k worth of shares in that time. It's great to see that insiders are only buying, not selling. But in this case the amount purchased means the recent transaction may not be very meaningful on its own.
Insider Ownership
For a common shareholder, it is worth checking how many shares are held by company insiders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. Insiders own 25% of Enterprise Bancorp shares, worth about US$82m. 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 Does This Data Suggest About Enterprise Bancorp Insiders?
Insider purchases may have been minimal, in the last three months, but there was no selling at all. Overall the buying isn't worth writing home about. On a brighter note, the transactions over the last year are encouraging. Insiders own shares in Enterprise Bancorp and we see no evidence to suggest they are worried about the future. 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.
If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity 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.
