Aurizon Holdings Insiders Added AU$2.1m Of Stock To Their Holdings

Quite a few insiders have dramatically grown their holdings in Aurizon Holdings Limited (ASX:AZJ) over the past 12 months. An insider's optimism about the company's prospects is a positive sign.

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.

View our latest analysis for Aurizon Holdings

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Aurizon Holdings

In the last twelve months, the biggest single purchase by an insider was when MD, CEO & Director Andrew Harding bought AU$884k worth of shares at a price of AU$3.85 per share. That means that even when the share price was higher than AU$3.57 (the recent price), an insider wanted to purchase shares. It's very possible they regret the purchase, but it's more likely they are bullish about the company. To us, it's very important to consider the price insiders pay for 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. We note that Andrew Harding was both the biggest buyer and the biggest seller.

In the last twelve months insiders purchased 568.36k shares for AU$2.1m. But they sold 459.91k shares for AU$1.7m. In the last twelve months there was more buying than selling by Aurizon Holdings 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!

There are always plenty of stocks that insiders are buying. So if that suits your style you could check each stock one by one or you could take a look at this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).

Insiders At Aurizon Holdings Have Bought Stock Recently

It's good to see that Aurizon Holdings insiders have made notable investments in the company's shares. Specifically, Independent Non-Executive Director Timothy James Longstaff bought AU$100k worth of shares in that time, and we didn't record any sales whatsoever. This could be interpreted as suggesting a positive outlook.

Does Aurizon Holdings 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. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. Our data indicates that Aurizon Holdings insiders own about AU$12m worth of shares (which is 0.2% of the company). Overall, this level of ownership isn't that impressive, but it's certainly better than nothing!

So What Do The Aurizon Holdings Insider Transactions Indicate?

The recent insider purchase is heartening. We also take confidence from the longer term picture of insider transactions. Insiders likely see value in Aurizon Holdings shares, given these transactions (along with notable insider ownership of the company). So while it's helpful to know what insiders are doing in terms of buying or selling, it's also helpful to know the risks that a particular company is facing. When we did our research, we found 3 warning signs for Aurizon Holdings (1 is significant!) that we believe deserve your full attention.

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 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.