Have Koninklijke DSM N.V. (AMS:DSM) Insiders Been Selling Their Stock?

Some Koninklijke DSM N.V. ( AMS:DSM ) shareholders may be a little concerned to see that the Honorary Chairman, Feike Sijbesma, recently sold a whopping €1.2m worth of stock at a price of €102 per share. However, it's crucial to note that they remain very much invested in the stock and that sale only reduced their holding by 4.5%.

View our latest analysis for Koninklijke DSM

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Koninklijke DSM

In fact, the recent sale by Feike Sijbesma was the biggest sale of Koninklijke DSM shares made by an insider individual in the last twelve months, according to our records. So it's clear an insider wanted to take some cash off the table, even below the current price of €104. Following discussions with the company representative, Lieke Jong-de-Tops, we wish to highlight that the sale was an automatic trade made to cover a Dutch tax liability resulting from the company’s stock incentive plan. Although, we generally consider it a negative if insiders have been selling, especially if they did so below the current price, because it implies that they considered a lower price to be reasonable. 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 only 4.5%of Feike Sijbesma's holding.

Happily, we note that in the last year insiders paid €442k for 4.21k shares. But insiders sold 20460 shares worth €2.1m. In total, Koninklijke DSM insiders sold more than they bought over the last year. You can see the insider transactions (by individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!

If you are like me, then you will 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. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. Insiders own 0.2% of Koninklijke DSM shares, worth about €36m. We've certainly seen higher levels of insider ownership elsewhere, but these holdings are enough to suggest alignment between insiders and the other shareholders.

So What Does This Data Suggest About Koninklijke DSM Insiders?

Unfortunately, there has been more insider selling of Koninklijke DSM stock, than buying, in the last three months. Zooming out, the longer term picture doesn't give us much comfort. Insiders own shares, but we're still pretty cautious, given the history of sales. We're in no rush to buy! 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 1 warning sign for Koninklijke DSM 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.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com . 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. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.

We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.