Insider Buyers At James Cropper Sitting On UK£68k Profit

James Cropper PLC (LON:CRPR) insiders who acquired shares over the previous 12 months, can probably afford to ignore the recent 12% decline in the stock price. After taking the recent loss into consideration, the UK£402k worth of stock they bought is now worth UK£469k, indicating that their investment yielded a positive return.

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

See our latest analysis for James Cropper

James Cropper Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by Chairman of the Board Mark A. Cropper for UK£353k worth of shares, at about UK£6.09 per share. We do like to see buying, but this purchase was made at well below the current price of UK£7.35. While it does suggest insiders consider the stock undervalued at lower prices, this transaction doesn't tell us much about what they think of current prices.

Mark A. Cropper bought 63.87k shares over the last 12 months at an average price of UK£6.29. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. 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. So if that suits your style you could check each stock one by one or you could take a look at this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).

Insider Ownership Of James Cropper

For a common shareholder, it is worth checking how many shares are held by company 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. Insiders own 27% of James Cropper shares, worth about UK£19m. 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 James Cropper Tell Us?

There haven't been any insider transactions in the last three months -- that doesn't mean much. On a brighter note, the transactions over the last year are encouraging. Insiders do have a stake in James Cropper and their transactions don't cause us concern. So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. Our analysis shows 3 warning signs for James Cropper (1 doesn't sit too well with us!) and we strongly recommend you look at these before investing.

But note: James Cropper 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, 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.