As Smart Metering Systems plc (LON:SMS) hits UK£1.2b market cap, insiders may be dismayed about not purchasing higher quantities

Last week, Smart Metering Systems plc (LON:SMS) insiders, who had purchased shares in the previous 12 months were rewarded handsomely. The shares increased by 5.4% last week, resulting in a UK£60m increase in the company's market worth. Put another way, the original UK£325k acquisition is now worth UK£395k.

Although we don't think shareholders should simply follow insider transactions, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.

View our latest analysis for Smart Metering Systems

Smart Metering Systems Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by CEO & Director Timothy Mortlock for UK£100k worth of shares, at about UK£7.11 per share. Even though the purchase was made at a significantly lower price than the recent price (UK£8.85), we still think insider buying is a positive. Because the shares were purchased at a lower price, this particular buy doesn't tell us much about how insiders feel about the current share price.

Happily, we note that in the last year insiders paid UK£325k for 44.60k shares. But insiders sold 2.11k shares worth UK£15k. Overall, Smart Metering Systems insiders were net buyers during the last year. 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!

Smart Metering Systems 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

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 4.2% of Smart Metering Systems shares, worth about UK£49m. While this is a strong but not outstanding level of insider ownership, it's enough to indicate some alignment between management and smaller shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Smart Metering Systems Tell Us?

There haven't been any insider transactions in the last three months -- that doesn't mean much. But insiders have shown more of an appetite for the stock, over the last year. Insiders own shares in Smart Metering Systems and we see no evidence to suggest they are worried about the future. While we like knowing what's going on with the insider's ownership and transactions, we make sure to also consider what risks are facing a stock before making any investment decision. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for Smart Metering Systems you should know about.

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, 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.