Have Insiders Been Buying Primo Water Corporation (TSE:PRMW) Shares?
We've lost count of how many times insiders have accumulated shares in a company that goes on to improve markedly. Unfortunately, there are also plenty of examples of share prices declining precipitously after insiders have sold shares. So before you buy or sell Primo Water Corporation (TSE:PRMW), you may well want to know whether insiders have been buying or selling.
What Is Insider Buying?
It is perfectly legal for company insiders, including board members, to buy and sell stock in a company. However, most countries require that the company discloses such transactions to the market.
We would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing. But it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing. As Peter Lynch said, 'insiders might sell their shares for any number of reasons, but they buy them for only one: they think the price will rise'.
See our latest analysis for Primo Water
Primo Water Insider Transactions Over The Last Year
Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by President Thomas Harrington for CA$644k worth of shares, at about CA$18.39 per share. So it's clear an insider wanted to buy, at around the current price, which is CA$20.12. Of course they may have changed their mind. But this suggests they are optimistic. We do always like to see insider buying, but it is worth noting if those purchases were made at well below today's share price, as the discount to value may have narrowed with the rising price. In this case we're pleased to report that the insider bought shares at close to current prices. The only individual insider to buy over the last year was Thomas Harrington.
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!
Primo Water is not the only stock that insiders are buying. For those who like to find winning investments this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.
Primo Water Insiders Bought Stock Recently
At Primo Water,over the last quarter, we have observed quite a lot more insider buying than insider selling. President Thomas Harrington spent CA$644k on stock. But we did see Chairman of the Board Jeremy S. Fowden sell shares worth CA$11k. We think insiders may be optimistic about the future, since insiders have been net buyers of shares.
Insider Ownership
Another way to test the alignment between the leaders of a company and other shareholders is to look at how many shares they own. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. Primo Water insiders own about CA$96m worth of shares. That equates to 3.0% of the company. We've certainly seen higher levels of insider ownership elsewhere, but these holdings are enough to suggest alignment between insiders and the other shareholders.
What Might The Insider Transactions At Primo Water Tell Us?
It's certainly positive to see the recent insider purchase. And an analysis of the transactions over the last year also gives us confidence. But we don't feel the same about the fact the company is making losses. Insiders likely see value in Primo Water shares, given these transactions (along with notable insider ownership of the company). So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. You'd be interested to know, that we found 1 warning sign for Primo Water and we suggest you have a look.
Of course Primo Water 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.
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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