Bullish BriaCell Therapeutics Insider Buying Worth US$5.52m Yet To Pay Off

Insiders who bought US$5.52m worth of BriaCell Therapeutics Corp.'s (TSE:BCT) stock at an average buy price of US$2.99 over the last year may be disappointed by the recent 45% decrease in the stock. Insiders purchase with the hope of seeing their investments increase in value over time. However, due to recent losses, their initial investment is now only worth US$1.60m, which is not great.

While we would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing, we do think it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing.

See our latest analysis for BriaCell Therapeutics

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At BriaCell Therapeutics

In fact, the recent purchase by insider Marc Lustig was not their only acquisition of BriaCell Therapeutics shares this year. Earlier in the year, they paid CA$3.02 per share in a CA$2.7m purchase. So it's clear an insider wanted to buy, even at a higher price than the current share price (being CA$0.87). 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. It is encouraging to see an insider paid above the current price for shares, as it suggests they saw value, even at higher levels. Marc Lustig was the only individual insider to buy shares in the last twelve months.

Marc Lustig purchased 1.84m shares over the year. The average price per share was CA$2.99. 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!

There are always plenty of stocks that insiders are buying. If investing in lesser known companies is your style, you could take a look at this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).

Does BriaCell Therapeutics Boast High Insider Ownership?

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. It appears that BriaCell Therapeutics insiders own 15% of the company, worth about CA$6.2m. 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 BriaCell Therapeutics Insider Transactions Indicate?

The recent insider purchase is heartening. And an analysis of the transactions over the last year also gives us confidence. But on the other hand, the company made a loss during the last year, which makes us a little cautious. Given that insiders also own a fair bit of BriaCell Therapeutics we think they are probably pretty confident of a bright future. 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 6 warning signs for BriaCell Therapeutics (4 are potentially serious!) that we believe deserve your full attention.

But note: BriaCell Therapeutics 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 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.