Wilmar International Insiders Placed Bullish Bets Worth US$45.4m

Over the last year, a good number of insiders have significantly increased their holdings in Wilmar International Limited (SGX:F34). This is encouraging because it indicates that insiders are more optimistic about the company's prospects.

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.

View our latest analysis for Wilmar International

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Wilmar International

The Co-Founder Khoon Hong Kuok made the biggest insider purchase in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for S$10m worth of shares at a price of S$3.23 each. That implies that an insider found the current price of S$3.29 per share to be enticing. While their view may have changed since the purchase was made, this does at least suggest they have had confidence in the company's future. 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.

Happily, we note that in the last year insiders paid S$45m for 13.73m shares. On the other hand they divested 476.00k shares, for S$1.7m. In total, Wilmar 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. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

There are always plenty of stocks that insiders are buying. If investing in lesser known companies is your style, you could take a look at this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).

Insiders At Wilmar International Have Bought Stock Recently

It's good to see that Wilmar International insiders have made notable investments in the company's shares. Co-Founder Khoon Hong Kuok spent S$1.6m on stock, and there wasn't any selling. That shows some optimism about the company's future.

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. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. Wilmar International insiders own 7.1% of the company, currently worth about S$1.4b based on the recent share price. I like to see this level of insider ownership, because it increases the chances that management are thinking about the best interests of shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Wilmar International Tell Us?

It is good to see the recent insider purchase. And the longer term insider transactions also give us confidence. Along with the high insider ownership, this analysis suggests that insiders are quite bullish about Wilmar International. That's what I like to see! 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. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for Wilmar International (of which 1 makes us a bit uncomfortable!) you should know about.

Of course Wilmar International 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.