Have Insiders Been Buying Henry Boot PLC (LON:BOOT) Shares This Year?

We often see insiders buying up shares in companies that perform well over the long term. On the other hand, we'd be remiss not to mention that insider sales have been known to precede tough periods for a business. So before you buy or sell Henry Boot PLC (LON:BOOT), you may well want to know whether insiders have been buying or selling.

Do Insider Transactions Matter?

It's quite normal to see company insiders, such as board members, trading in company stock, from time to time. However, such insiders must disclose their trading activities, and not trade on inside information.

We don't think shareholders should simply follow insider transactions. But it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing. For example, a Harvard University study found that 'insider purchases earn abnormal returns of more than 6% per year'.

Check out our latest analysis for Henry Boot

Henry Boot Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by CEO & Director Timothy Roberts for UK£100k worth of shares, at about UK£2.44 per share. That means that an insider was happy to buy shares at around the current price of UK£2.85. While their view may have changed since the purchase was made, this does at least suggest they have had confidence in the company's future. If someone buys shares at well below current prices, it's a good sign on balance, but keep in mind they may no longer see value. In this case we're pleased to report that the insider purchases were made at close to current prices.

Over the last year, we can see that insiders have bought 61.01k shares worth UK£148k. On the other hand they divested 1.36k shares, for UK£4.5k. In the last twelve months there was more buying than selling by Henry Boot insiders. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

Henry Boot is not the only stock insiders are buying. So take a peek at this free list of growing companies with insider buying.

Insiders at Henry Boot Have Bought Stock Recently

Over the last quarter, Henry Boot insiders have spent a meaningful amount on shares. CEO & Director Timothy Roberts spent UK£100k on stock, and there wasn't any selling. This could be interpreted as suggesting a positive outlook.

Insider Ownership of Henry Boot

For a common shareholder, it is worth checking how many shares are held by company insiders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. Henry Boot insiders own about UK£76m worth of shares (which is 20% of the company). Most shareholders would be happy to see this sort of insider ownership, since it suggests that management incentives are well aligned with other shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Henry Boot Tell Us?

The recent insider purchase is heartening. And an analysis of the transactions over the last year also gives us confidence. Insiders likely see value in Henry Boot shares, given these transactions (along with notable insider ownership of the company). So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. While conducting our analysis, we found that Henry Boot has 1 warning sign and it would be unwise to ignore this.

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. 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.
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