Have Insiders Been Buying Zoetic International Plc (LON:ZOE) Shares?

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 Zoetic International Plc (LON:ZOE), you may well want to know whether insiders have been buying or selling.

What Is Insider Buying?

It is perfectly legal for company insiders, including board members, to buy and sell stock in a company. However, such insiders must disclose their trading activities, and not trade on inside information.

We would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing. But logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares. As Peter Lynch said, 'insiders might sell their shares for any number of reasons, but they buy them for only one: they think the price will rise'.

Check out our latest analysis for Zoetic International

Zoetic International Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

The Co-Chief Executive Officer & Director Antonio Russo made the biggest insider purchase in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for UK£195k worth of shares at a price of UK£0.39 each. We do like to see buying, but this purchase was made at well below the current price of UK£0.63. 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.

While Zoetic International insiders bought shares during the last year, they didn't sell. You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last 12 months, below. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

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

Zoetic International Insiders Bought Stock Recently

Over the last quarter, Zoetic International insiders have spent a meaningful amount on shares. In total, insiders bought UK£390k worth of shares in that time, and we didn't record any sales whatsoever. This could be interpreted as suggesting a positive outlook.

Does Zoetic International Boast High 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. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. Insiders own 8.4% of Zoetic International shares, worth about UK£9.7m. This level of insider ownership is good but just short of being particularly stand-out. It certainly does suggest a reasonable degree of alignment.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Zoetic International Tell Us?

The recent insider purchases are heartening. We also take confidence from the longer term picture of insider transactions. But we don't feel the same about the fact the company is making losses. While the overall levels of insider ownership are below what we'd like to see, the history of transactions imply that Zoetic International insiders are reasonably well aligned, and optimistic for 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. When we did our research, we found 4 warning signs for Zoetic International (2 are significant!) that we believe deserve your full attention.

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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