Tony Morgan Just Bought 11% More Shares In Southside Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:SBSI)

Whilst it may not be a huge deal, we thought it was good to see that Tony Morgan, who is a company insider, recently bought US$54k worth of stock, for US$27.20 per share. While we're hesitant to get too excited about a purchase of that size, we do note it increased their holding by a solid 11%.

View our latest analysis for Southside Bancshares

Southside Bancshares Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Notably, that recent purchase by Tony Morgan is the biggest insider purchase of Southside Bancshares shares that we've seen in the last year. That means that an insider was happy to buy shares at above the current price of US$26.10. Their view may have changed since then, but at least it shows they felt optimistic at the time. To us, it's very important to consider the price insiders pay for shares is very important. Generally speaking, it catches our eye when insiders have purchased shares at above current prices, as it suggests they believed the shares were worth buying, even at a higher price.

Over the last year, we can see that insiders have bought 8.93k shares worth US$248k. But they sold 163.00 shares for US$4.7k. In the last twelve months there was more buying than selling by Southside Bancshares insiders. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!

Southside Bancshares 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.

Insider Ownership of Southside Bancshares

Another way to test the alignment between the leaders of a company and other shareholders is to look at how many shares they own. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. Southside Bancshares insiders own about US$49m worth of shares. That equates to 5.7% 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.

So What Do The Southside Bancshares Insider Transactions Indicate?

It's certainly positive to see the recent insider purchases. We also take confidence from the longer term picture of insider transactions. Given that insiders also own a fair bit of Southside Bancshares we think they are probably pretty confident of a bright future. 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. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 1 warning sign for Southside Bancshares you should know about.

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.

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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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