Bank of Marin Bancorp (NASDAQ:BMRC) Insiders Increased Their Holdings

It is not uncommon to see companies perform well in the years after insiders buy shares. On the other hand, we'd be remiss not to mention that insider sales have been known to precede tough periods for a business. So before you buy or sell Bank of Marin Bancorp (NASDAQ:BMRC), you may well want to know whether insiders have been buying or selling.

What Is Insider Buying?

It is perfectly legal for company insiders, including board members, to buy and sell stock in a company. However, such insiders must disclose their trading activities, and not trade on inside information.

We don't think shareholders should simply follow insider transactions. But equally, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether. 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 Bank of Marin Bancorp

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Bank of Marin Bancorp

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by Independent Vice Chairman of the Board William McDevitt for US$199k worth of shares, at about US$38.30 per share. That implies that an insider found the current price of US$38.40 per share to be enticing. That means they have been optimistic about the company in the past, though they may have changed their mind. If someone buys shares at well below current prices, it's a good sign on balance, but keep in mind they may no longer see value. Happily, the Bank of Marin Bancorp insiders decided to buy shares at close to current prices.

Happily, we note that in the last year insiders paid US$281k for 7.80k shares. On the other hand they divested 1.14k shares, for US$48k. In total, Bank of Marin Bancorp 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!

Bank of Marin Bancorp 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 of Bank of Marin Bancorp

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. Insiders own 3.9% of Bank of Marin Bancorp shares, worth about US$20m. This level of insider ownership is good but just short of being particularly stand-out. It certainly does suggest a reasonable degree of alignment.

So What Does This Data Suggest About Bank of Marin Bancorp Insiders?

It doesn't really mean much that no insider has traded Bank of Marin Bancorp shares in the last quarter. However, our analysis of transactions over the last year is heartening. Overall we don't see anything to make us think Bank of Marin Bancorp insiders are doubting the company, and they do own shares. So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for Bank of Marin Bancorp (of which 1 is a bit concerning!) you should know about.

If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity 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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