Hill & Smith Insider Ups Holding By 162% During Year

From what we can see, insiders were net buyers in Hill & Smith PLC's (LON:HILS ) during the past 12 months. That is, insiders acquired the stock in greater numbers than they sold it.

While we would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing, we do think it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing.

View our latest analysis for Hill & Smith

Hill & Smith Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by Executive Chairman Alan Clifford Giddins for UK£633k worth of shares, at about UK£14.49 per share. Although we like to see insider buying, we note that this large purchase was at significantly below the recent price of UK£19.58. 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.

Alan Clifford Giddins bought a total of 65.90k shares over the year at an average price of UK£15.28. 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!

Hill & Smith 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

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 Hill & Smith insiders own 0.1% of the company, worth about UK£2.2m. I generally like to see higher levels of ownership.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Hill & Smith Tell Us?

It is good to see the recent insider purchase. And the longer term insider transactions also give us confidence. While the overall levels of insider ownership are below what we'd like to see, the history of transactions imply that Hill & Smith insiders are reasonably well aligned, and optimistic for the future. 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. In terms of investment risks, we've identified 1 warning sign with Hill & Smith and understanding this should be part of your investment process.

Of course Hill & Smith may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of high quality companies.

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.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.

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.