Seabridge Gold Insiders Sold CA$929k Of Shares Suggesting Hesitancy

Seabridge Gold Inc. (TSE:SEA) shareholders may have reason to be concerned, as several insiders sold their shares over the past year. When analyzing insider transactions, it is usually more valuable to know whether insiders are buying versus knowing if they are selling, as the latter sends an ambiguous message. However, when multiple insiders sell stock over a specific duration, shareholders should take notice as that could possibly be a red flag.

While insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing, we do think it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing.

Check out our latest analysis for Seabridge Gold

Seabridge Gold Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider sale was by the VP, Chief Sustainability Officer & Director, Melanie Miller, for CA$444k worth of shares, at about CA$22.20 per share. While insider selling is a negative, to us, it is more negative if the shares are sold at a lower price. The silver lining is that this sell-down took place above the latest price (CA$19.46). So it is hard to draw any strong conclusion from it.

Over the last year we saw more insider selling of Seabridge Gold shares, than buying. 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!

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Seabridge Gold Insiders Are Selling The Stock

The last quarter saw substantial insider selling of Seabridge Gold shares. In total, Senior Vice President of Environmental Affairs Robert Murphy sold CA$125k worth of shares in that time, and we didn't record any purchases whatsoever. In light of this it's hard to argue that all the insiders think that the shares are a bargain.

Does Seabridge Gold Boast High Insider Ownership?

Looking at the total insider shareholdings in a company can help to inform your view of whether they are well aligned with common shareholders. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. Insiders own 2.7% of Seabridge Gold shares, worth about CA$48m. While this is a strong but not outstanding level of insider ownership, it's enough to indicate some alignment between management and smaller shareholders.

So What Do The Seabridge Gold Insider Transactions Indicate?

An insider sold Seabridge Gold shares recently, but they didn't buy any. And our longer term analysis of insider transactions didn't bring confidence, either. Insider ownership isn't particularly high, so this analysis makes us cautious about the company. So we'd only buy after careful consideration. So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. To help with this, we've discovered 4 warning signs (3 are concerning!) that you ought to be aware of before buying any shares in Seabridge Gold.

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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.