Insider Purchases Worth HK$5.1m See Losses As Harbour Equine Holdings Market Value Drops To HK$102m \

Insiders who acquired HK$5.1m worth of Harbour Equine Holdings Limited's (HKG:8377) stock at an average price of HK$0.58 in the past 12 months may be dismayed by the recent 17% price decline. Insiders buy with the expectation to see their investments rise in value over a period of time. However, recent losses have rendered their above investment worth HK$2.2m which is not ideal.

Although we don't think shareholders should simply follow insider transactions, logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares.

See our latest analysis for Harbour Equine Holdings

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Harbour Equine Holdings

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by Executive Director Pok Man Josiah Ma for HK$5.1m worth of shares, at about HK$0.58 per share. That means that an insider was happy to buy shares at above the current price of HK$0.25. Their view may have changed since then, but at least it shows they felt optimistic at the time. We always take careful note of the price insiders pay when purchasing shares. 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. Pok Man Josiah Ma was the only individual insider to buy shares in the last twelve months.

The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!

Harbour Equine Holdings 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

Another way to test the alignment between the leaders of a company and other shareholders is to look at how many shares they own. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. It's great to see that Harbour Equine Holdings insiders own 44% of the company, worth about HK$45m. This kind of significant ownership by insiders does generally increase the chance that the company is run in the interest of all shareholders.

So What Do The Harbour Equine Holdings Insider Transactions Indicate?

The fact that there have been no Harbour Equine Holdings insider transactions recently certainly doesn't bother us. However, our analysis of transactions over the last year is heartening. With high insider ownership and encouraging transactions, it seems like Harbour Equine Holdings insiders think the business has merit. 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. For instance, we've identified 3 warning signs for Harbour Equine Holdings (2 make us uncomfortable) you should be aware of.

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of interesting 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. 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.