Have Insiders Been Buying California BanCorp (NASDAQ:CALB) Shares?

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 shareholders might well want to know whether insiders have been buying or selling shares in California BanCorp (NASDAQ:CALB).

What Is Insider Buying?

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 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'.

View our latest analysis for California BanCorp

California BanCorp Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

In the last twelve months, the biggest single purchase by an insider was when Chairman of the Board Stephen Cortese bought US$139k worth of shares at a price of US$13.23 per share. So it's clear an insider wanted to buy, at around the current price, which is US$13.56. That means they have been optimistic about the company in the past, though they may have changed their mind. We do always like to see insider buying, but it is worth noting if those purchases were made at well below today's share price, as the discount to value may have narrowed with the rising price. The good news for California BanCorp share holders is that insiders were buying at near the current price.

Over the last year, we can see that insiders have bought 16.70k shares worth US$221k. But they sold 1.50k shares for US$19k. In the last twelve months there was more buying than selling by California BanCorp insiders. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

California 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.

Does California BanCorp Boast High Insider Ownership?

Looking at the total insider shareholdings in a company can help to inform your view of whether they are well aligned with common shareholders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. Insiders own 8.6% of California BanCorp shares, worth about US$9.6m, according to our data. Whilst better than nothing, we're not overly impressed by these holdings.

So What Do The California BanCorp Insider Transactions Indicate?

It doesn't really mean much that no insider has traded California BanCorp shares in the last quarter. However, our analysis of transactions over the last year is heartening. While we have no worries about the insider transactions, we'd be more comfortable if they owned more California BanCorp stock. 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 California BanCorp has 2 warning signs and it would be unwise to ignore these.

But note: California BanCorp 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. 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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