Duncan West Is The Independent Non-Executive Chairman of Challenger Limited (ASX:CGF) And They Just Picked Up 62% More Shares

Even if it's not a huge purchase, we think it was good to see that Duncan West, the Independent Non-Executive Chairman of Challenger Limited (ASX:CGF) recently shelled out AU$101k to buy stock, at AU$6.28 per share. While that isn't the hugest buy, it actually boosted their shareholding by 62%, which is good to see.

Check out our latest analysis for Challenger

Challenger Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Notably, that recent purchase by Duncan West is the biggest insider purchase of Challenger shares that we've seen in the last year. That means that even when the share price was higher than AU$6.03 (the recent price), an insider wanted to purchase shares. While their view may have changed since the purchase was made, this does at least suggest they have had confidence in the company's future. To us, it's very important to consider the price insiders pay for shares. It is encouraging to see an insider paid above the current price for shares, as it suggests they saw value, even at higher levels. The only individual insider to buy over the last year was Duncan West.

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!

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 Of Challenger

Looking at the total insider shareholdings in a company can help to inform your view of whether they are well aligned with common shareholders. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. Based on our data, Challenger insiders have about 0.1% of the stock, worth approximately AU$4.4m. I generally like to see higher levels of ownership.

So What Do The Challenger Insider Transactions Indicate?

The recent insider purchase is heartening. And an analysis of the transactions over the last year also gives us confidence. While the overall levels of insider ownership are below what we'd like to see, the history of transactions imply that Challenger insiders are reasonably well aligned, and optimistic for the 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. To assist with this, we've discovered 2 warning signs that you should run your eye over to get a better picture of Challenger.

But note: Challenger may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with high ROE 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. 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.