Trade Alert: The CEO & Director Of Shield Therapeutics plc (LON:STX), Timothy Watts, Has Just Spent UK£70k Buying 22% More Shares

Whilst it may not be a huge deal, we thought it was good to see that the Shield Therapeutics plc (LON:STX) CEO & Director, Timothy Watts, recently bought UK£70k worth of stock, for UK£0.70 per share. While we're hesitant to get too excited about a purchase of that size, we do note it increased their holding by a solid 22%.

Check out our latest analysis for Shield Therapeutics

Shield Therapeutics Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Notably, that recent purchase by Timothy Watts is the biggest insider purchase of Shield Therapeutics shares that we've seen in the last year. That means that an insider was happy to buy shares at above the current price of UK£0.61. It's very possible they regret the purchase, but it's more likely they are bullish about the company. In our view, the price an insider pays for shares is very important. As a general rule, we feel more positive about a stock when an insider has bought shares at above current prices, because that suggests they viewed the stock as good value, even at a higher price. The only individual insider to buy over the last year was Timothy Watts.

You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last 12 months, below. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

Shield Therapeutics 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 of Shield Therapeutics

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. Shield Therapeutics insiders own about UK£8.2m worth of shares. That equates to 11% of the company. We've certainly seen higher levels of insider ownership elsewhere, but these holdings are enough to suggest alignment between insiders and the other shareholders.

So What Do The Shield Therapeutics Insider Transactions Indicate?

It's certainly positive to see the recent insider purchase. And the longer term insider transactions also give us confidence. But we don't feel the same about the fact the company is making losses. We would certainly prefer see higher levels of insider ownership but analysis of the insider transactions suggests that Shield Therapeutics insiders are expecting a bright future. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Shield Therapeutics. At Simply Wall St, we found 2 warning signs for Shield Therapeutics that deserve your attention before buying any shares.

Of course Shield Therapeutics 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, 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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