Should You Take Comfort From Insider Transactions At Aker Solutions ASA (OB:AKSO)?

We've lost count of how many times insiders have accumulated shares in a company that goes on to improve markedly. Unfortunately, there are also plenty of examples of share prices declining precipitously after insiders have sold shares. So before you buy or sell Aker Solutions ASA (OB:AKSO), you may well want to know whether insiders have been buying or selling.

What Is Insider Selling?

Most investors know that it is quite permissible for company leaders, such as directors of the board, to buy and sell stock in the company. However, most countries require that the company discloses such transactions to the market.

We don't think shareholders should simply follow insider transactions. But logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares. For example, a Columbia University study found that 'insiders are more likely to engage in open market purchases of their own company’s stock when the firm is about to reveal new agreements with customers and suppliers'.

Check out our latest analysis for Aker Solutions

Aker Solutions Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

There wasn't any very large single transaction over the last year, but we can still observe some trading.

In the last twelve months Aker Solutions insiders were buying shares, but not selling. Their average price was about kr8.98. It's great to see insiders putting their own cash into the company's stock, albeit at below the recent share price (kr10.87). The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

There are always plenty of stocks that insiders are buying. So if that suits your style you could check each stock one by one or you could take a look at this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).

Does Aker Solutions Boast High Insider Ownership?

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. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. From what we can see in our data, insiders own only about kr4.7m worth of Aker Solutions shares. But they may have an indirect interest through a corporate structure that we haven't picked up on. We might be missing something but that seems like very low insider ownership.

So What Do The Aker Solutions Insider Transactions Indicate?

The fact that there have been no Aker Solutions insider transactions recently certainly doesn't bother us. But insiders have shown more of an appetite for the stock, over the last year. The transactions are fine but it'd be more encouraging if Aker Solutions insiders bought more shares in the company. While we like knowing what's going on with the insider's ownership and transactions, we make sure to also consider what risks are facing a stock before making any investment decision. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for Aker Solutions (of which 1 doesn't sit too well with us!) you should know about.

Of course Aker Solutions 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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