Insider Buying: The GoPro, Inc. (NASDAQ:GPRO) Independent Director Just Bought 9.5% More Shares
Investors who take an interest in GoPro, Inc. (NASDAQ:GPRO) should definitely note that the Independent Director, James Lanzone, recently paid US$9.77 per share to buy US$100k worth of the stock. While that's a very decent purchase to our minds, it was proportionally a bit modest, boosting their holding by just 9.5%.
View our latest analysis for GoPro
GoPro Insider Transactions Over The Last Year
Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider sale was by the Independent Director, Tyrone Ahmad-Taylor, for US$117k worth of shares, at about US$8.09 per share. That means that an insider was selling shares at slightly below the current price (US$9.86). As a general rule we consider it to be discouraging when insiders are selling below the current price, because it suggests they were happy with a lower valuation. While insider selling is not a positive sign, we can't be sure if it does mean insiders think the shares are fully valued, so it's only a weak sign. We note that the biggest single sale was 58% of Tyrone Ahmad-Taylor's holding. Tyrone Ahmad-Taylor was the only individual insider to sell over the last year.
Happily, we note that in the last year insiders paid US$191k for 20.27k shares. On the other hand they divested 14.45k shares, for US$117k. In the last twelve months there was more buying than selling by GoPro insiders. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) 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!
There are always plenty of stocks that insiders are buying. So if that suits your style you could check each stock one by one or you could take a look at this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).
Insider Ownership of GoPro
Another way to test the alignment between the leaders of a company and other shareholders is to look at how many shares they own. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. GoPro insiders own 19% of the company, currently worth about US$295m based on the recent share price. This kind of significant ownership by insiders does generally increase the chance that the company is run in the interest of all shareholders.
What Might The Insider Transactions At GoPro Tell Us?
It's certainly positive to see the recent insider purchases. And an analysis of the transactions over the last year also gives us confidence. However, we note that the company didn't make a profit over the last twelve months, which makes us cautious. When combined with notable insider ownership, these factors suggest GoPro insiders are well aligned, and quite possibly think the share price is too low. Nice! 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. Case in point: We've spotted 2 warning signs for GoPro you should be aware of.
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, but not derivative transactions.
This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. 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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