Munters Group Insiders Sell kr5.6m Of Stock, Possibly Signalling Caution

A number of Munters Group AB (publ) (STO:MTRS) insiders sold their shares in the last year, which may have raised concerns among investors. Knowing whether insiders are buying is usually more helpful when evaluating insider transactions, as insider selling can have various explanations. However, shareholders should take a deeper look if several insiders are selling stock over a specific time period.

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 Munters Group

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Munters Group

In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the Group VP & President of FoodTech, Pia Linder, sold kr2.9m worth of shares at a price of kr133 per share. That means that an insider was selling shares at slightly below the current price (kr190). We generally consider it a negative if insiders have been selling, especially if they did so below the current price, because it implies that they considered a lower price to be reasonable. While insider selling is not a positive sign, we can't be sure if it does mean insiders think the shares are fully valued, so it's only a weak sign. We note that the biggest single sale was 86% of Pia Linder's holding.

Over the last year, we can see that insiders have bought 20.21k shares worth kr2.6m. But they sold 43.30k shares for kr5.6m. Over the last year we saw more insider selling of Munters Group shares, than buying. They sold for an average price of about kr130. We don't gain confidence from insider selling below the recent share price. Since insiders sell for many reasons, we wouldn't put too much weight on it. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

If you like to buy stocks that insiders are buying, rather than selling, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).

Munters Group Insiders Bought Stock Recently

We saw some Munters Group insider buying shares in the last three months. President & CEO Klas Forsstrom bought kr453k worth of shares in that time. We like it when there are only buyers, and no sellers. But in this case the amount purchased means the recent transaction may not be very meaningful on its own.

Insider Ownership

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. From looking at our data, insiders own kr38m worth of Munters Group stock, about 0.1% of the company. But they may have an indirect interest through a corporate structure that we haven't picked up on. I generally like to see higher levels of ownership.

So What Does This Data Suggest About Munters Group Insiders?

It is good to see the recent insider purchase. On the other hand the transaction history, over the last year, isn't so positive. We don't take much heart from transactions by Munters Group insiders over the last year. But they own a reasonable amount of the company, and there was some buying recently. So they seem pretty well aligned, overall. So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. While conducting our analysis, we found that Munters Group has 1 warning sign and it would be unwise to ignore this.

Of course Munters Group 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.