Advertisement

A number of insiders bought Anglo American plc (LON:AAL) stock last year, which is great news for shareholders

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 Anglo American plc (LON:AAL), it sends a favourable message to the company's shareholders.

Although we don't think shareholders should simply follow insider transactions, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.

See our latest analysis for Anglo American

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Anglo American

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by insider James Rutherford for UK£144k worth of shares, at about UK£24.30 per share. Although we like to see insider buying, we note that this large purchase was at significantly below the recent price of UK£30.91. While it does suggest insiders consider the stock undervalued at lower prices, this transaction doesn't tell us much about what they think of current prices.

Anglo American 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 want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

insider-trading-volume
insider-trading-volume

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.

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. Anglo American insiders own about UK£109m worth of shares (which is 0.3% 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 Anglo American Insiders?

It doesn't really mean much that no insider has traded Anglo American shares in the last quarter. But insiders have shown more of an appetite for the stock, over the last year. With high insider ownership and encouraging transactions, it seems like Anglo American insiders think the business has merit. 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. Our analysis shows 2 warning signs for Anglo American (1 is concerning!) and we strongly recommend you look at these before investing.

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of interesting 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. 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.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.