Yara International ASA's stock is down 7.1%, but insiders still have about US$238k in profit after buying earlier this year

Insiders who purchased Yara International ASA (OB:YAR) shares in the past 12 months are unlikely to be deeply impacted by the stock's 7.1% decline over the past week. Reason being, despite the recent loss, insiders original purchase value of US$4.5m is now worth US$4.7m.

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 Yara International

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Yara International

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by President & CEO Svein Holsether for kr1m worth of shares, at about kr433 per share. That means that an insider was happy to buy shares at around the current price of kr457. That means they have been optimistic about the company in the past, though they may have changed their mind. While we always like to see insider buying, it's less meaningful if the purchases were made at much lower prices, as the opportunity they saw may have passed. In this case we're pleased to report that the insider purchases were made at close to current prices.

Over the last year, we can see that insiders have bought 10.33k shares worth kr4.5m. But they sold 250.00 shares for kr116k. In total, Yara International insiders bought more than they sold over the last year. You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last 12 months, below. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!

There are plenty of other companies that have insiders buying up shares. You probably do not want to miss this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying.

Insider Ownership

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. Insiders own 0.06% of Yara International shares, worth about kr70m, according to our data. We do generally prefer see higher levels of insider ownership.

So What Do The Yara International Insider Transactions Indicate?

There haven't been any insider transactions in the last three months -- that doesn't mean much. But insiders have shown more of an appetite for the stock, over the last year. Insiders do have a stake in Yara International and their transactions don't cause us concern. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Yara International. When we did our research, we found 2 warning signs for Yara International (1 is potentially serious!) that we believe deserve your full attention.

But note: Yara International 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, 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.