Insiders who purchased Empire Company Limited (TSE:EMP.A) earlier this year lose an additional CA$24k as the stock sinks to CA$33.73

Insiders who bought CA$398k worth of Empire Company Limited's (TSE:EMP.A) stock at an average buy price of CA$35.90 over the last year may be disappointed by the recent 6.0% decrease in the stock. Insiders invest with the hopes of seeing their money grow in value over time. However, as a result of recent losses, their initial investment is now only worth CA$374k, which is not what they expected.

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 Empire

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Empire

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by President Michael Medline for CA$348k worth of shares, at about CA$35.90 per share. That means that even when the share price was higher than CA$33.73 (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. As a general rule, we feel more positive about a stock if insiders have bought shares at above current prices, because that suggests they viewed the stock as good value, even at a higher price.

Over the last year, we can see that insiders have bought 11.09k shares worth CA$398k. But insiders sold 834.00 shares worth CA$35k. In the last twelve months there was more buying than selling by Empire insiders. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

Empire 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 Empire

Looking at the total insider shareholdings in a company can help to inform your view of whether they are well aligned with common shareholders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. Insiders own 1.0% of Empire shares, worth about CA$86m. 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 Empire Insider Transactions Indicate?

It doesn't really mean much that no insider has traded Empire shares in the last quarter. On a brighter note, the transactions over the last year are encouraging. Insiders own shares in Empire and we see no evidence to suggest they are worried about the future. Of course, the future is what matters most. So if you are interested in Empire, you should check out this free report on analyst forecasts for the company.

Of course Empire 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, 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.