This Severn Trent Insider Reduced Their Stake By 23%

From what we can see, insiders were net sellers in Severn Trent PLC's (LON:SVT ) during the past 12 months. That is, insiders sold the stock in greater numbers than they purchased it.

While we would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing, logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares.

Check out our latest analysis for Severn Trent

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Severn Trent

The insider, James Bowling, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for UK£1.1m worth of shares at a price of UK£27.09 each. That means that an insider was selling shares at around the current price of UK£26.13. We generally don't like to see insider selling, but the lower the sale price, the more it concerns us. Given that the sale took place at around current prices, it makes us a little cautious but is hardly a major concern. James Bowling was the only individual insider to sell shares in the last twelve months.

Over the last year, we can see that insiders have bought 12.79k shares worth UK£275k. On the other hand they divested 40.00k shares, for UK£1.1m. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

If you are like me, then you will not want to miss this free list of small cap stocks that are not only being bought by insiders but also have attractive valuations.

Insider Ownership Of Severn Trent

For a common shareholder, it is worth checking how many shares are held by company insiders. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. It appears that Severn Trent insiders own 0.2% of the company, worth about UK£14m. While this is a strong but not outstanding level of insider ownership, it's enough to indicate some alignment between management and smaller shareholders.

So What Do The Severn Trent Insider Transactions Indicate?

There haven't been any insider transactions in the last three months -- that doesn't mean much. Our analysis of Severn Trent insider transactions leaves us cautious. But it's good to see that insiders own shares in the company. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Severn Trent. Be aware that Severn Trent is showing 4 warning signs in our investment analysis, and 2 of those are a bit concerning...

But note: Severn Trent 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 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.