Insiders At TP ICAP Group Sold UK£424k In Stock, Alluding To Potential Weakness

TP ICAP Group PLC (LON:TCAP) shareholders might have a reason to worry after multiple insiders sold their shares over the last 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, if numerous insiders are selling, shareholders should investigate more.

While insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing, logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares.

Check out our latest analysis for TP ICAP Group

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At TP ICAP Group

In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the Group CEO & Executive Director, Nicolas Noel Breteau, sold UK£210k worth of shares at a price of UK£1.80 per share. So what is clear is that an insider saw fit to sell at around the current price of UK£1.69. While insider selling is a negative, to us, it is more negative if the shares are sold at a lower price. We note that this sale took place at around the current price, so it isn't a major concern, though it's hardly a good sign.

Happily, we note that in the last year insiders paid UK£93k for 56.47k shares. But insiders sold 235.93k shares worth UK£424k. All up, insiders sold more shares in TP ICAP Group than they bought, over the last year. 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!

If you like to buy stocks that insiders are buying, rather than selling, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).

Insiders At TP ICAP Group Have Bought Stock Recently

It's good to see that TP ICAP Group insiders have made notable investments in the company's shares. Independent Non-Executive Chairman of the Board Richard David Berliand spent UK£73k on stock, and there wasn't any selling. That shows some optimism about the company's future.

Insider Ownership

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. Our data suggests TP ICAP Group insiders own 0.1% of the company, worth about UK£1.8m. We prefer to see high levels of insider ownership.

What Might The Insider Transactions At TP ICAP Group Tell Us?

It's certainly positive to see the recent insider purchase. However, the longer term transactions are not so encouraging. The transactions over the last year don't give us confidence, and nor does the fairly low insider ownership, but at least the recent buying is a positive. 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. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for TP ICAP Group you should know about.

But note: TP ICAP Group 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.