Oxford Nanopore Technologies Up 15%, Insider Buyers Are Up 27%

Oxford Nanopore Technologies plc (LON:ONT) insiders who purchased shares in the last 12 months were richly rewarded last week. The stock climbed by 15% resulting in a UK£199m addition to the company’s market value. Put another way, the original UK£488.2k acquisition is now worth UK£620.5k.

While insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.

View our latest analysis for Oxford Nanopore Technologies

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Oxford Nanopore Technologies

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by Non-Executive Chair Duncan Tatton-Brown for UK£297k worth of shares, at about UK£1.26 per share. Even though the purchase was made at a significantly lower price than the recent price (UK£1.62), we still think insider buying is a positive. 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.

Over the last year, we can see that insiders have bought 382.58k shares worth UK£488k. But insiders sold 45.47k shares worth UK£44k. In total, Oxford Nanopore Technologies insiders bought more than they sold 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!

Oxford Nanopore Technologies is not the only stock insiders are buying. So take a peek at this free list of under-the-radar companies with insider buying.

Oxford Nanopore Technologies Insiders Are Selling The Stock

Over the last three months, we've seen significant insider selling at Oxford Nanopore Technologies. Specifically, Co-Founder Gurdial Sanghera ditched UK£44k worth of shares in that time, and we didn't record any purchases whatsoever. In light of this it's hard to argue that all the insiders think that the shares are a bargain.

Insider Ownership Of Oxford Nanopore Technologies

I like to look at how many shares insiders own in a company, to help inform my view of how aligned they are with insiders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. It appears that Oxford Nanopore Technologies insiders own 1.5% of the company, worth about UK£22m. 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 Does This Data Suggest About Oxford Nanopore Technologies Insiders?

While there has not been any insider buying in the last three months, there has been selling. However, the sales are not big enough to concern us at all. However, our analysis of transactions over the last year is heartening. Insiders do have a stake in Oxford Nanopore Technologies and their transactions don't cause us concern. 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. Case in point: We've spotted 3 warning signs for Oxford Nanopore Technologies you should be aware of.

Of course Oxford Nanopore Technologies 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.

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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.