Despite Recent Gains, Copper Search Insiders Are Still Down AU$102k

Insiders who bought AU$244.4k worth of Copper Search Limited (ASX:CUS) stock in the last year have seen some of their losses recouped as the stock gained 11% last week. However, the purchase is proving to be an expensive wager as insiders are yet to get ahead of their losses which currently stand at AU$102k since the time of purchase.

While insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.

Check out our latest analysis for Copper Search

Copper Search Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by Non-Executive Director Peter McIntyre for AU$100k worth of shares, at about AU$0.13 per share. That means that even when the share price was higher than AU$0.072 (the recent price), an insider wanted to purchase shares. Their view may have changed since then, but at least it shows they felt optimistic at the time. We always take careful note of the price insiders pay when purchasing shares. 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.

In the last twelve months Copper Search insiders were buying shares, but not selling. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

Copper Search is not the only stock that insiders are buying. For those who like to find small cap companies at attractive valuations, this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

Copper Search Insiders Bought Stock Recently

Over the last three months, we've seen a bit of insider buying at Copper Search. Insiders purchased AU$30k worth of shares in that period. We like it when there are only buyers, and no sellers. But in this case the amount purchased means the recent transaction may not be very meaningful on its own.

Does Copper Search Boast High 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. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. Insiders own 12% of Copper Search shares, worth about AU$967k, according to our data. However, it's possible that insiders might have an indirect interest through a more complex structure. Whilst better than nothing, we're not overly impressed by these holdings.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Copper Search Tell Us?

We note a that there has been a bit of insider buying recently (but no selling). That said, the purchases were not large. On a brighter note, the transactions over the last year are encouraging. The transactions are fine but it'd be more encouraging if Copper Search insiders bought more shares in the company. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Copper Search. When we did our research, we found 5 warning signs for Copper Search (4 are significant!) that we believe deserve your full attention.

Of course Copper Search 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 of direct interests only, but not derivative transactions or indirect interests.

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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.