Don't Ignore The Insider Selling In Peapack-Gladstone Financial

Investors may wish to note that the SEVP & President of Wealth Management of Peapack-Gladstone Financial Corporation, John Babcock, recently netted US$97k from selling stock, receiving an average price of US$32.29. However we note that the sale only shrunk their holding by 5.1%.

See our latest analysis for Peapack-Gladstone Financial

Peapack-Gladstone Financial Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Notably, that recent sale by SEVP & President of Wealth Management John Babcock was not the only time they sold Peapack-Gladstone Financial shares this year. They previously made an even bigger sale of -US$269k worth of shares at a price of US$26.89 per share. That means that an insider was selling shares at slightly below the current price (US$37.57). When an insider sells below the current price, it suggests that they considered that lower price to be fair. That makes us wonder what they think of the (higher) recent valuation. However, while insider selling is sometimes discouraging, it's only a weak signal. We note that the biggest single sale was only 15% of John Babcock's holding.

Peapack-Gladstone Financial insiders didn't buy any shares over the last year. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!

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

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. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. Insiders own 11% of Peapack-Gladstone Financial shares, worth about US$60m. While this is a strong but not outstanding level of insider ownership, it's enough to indicate some alignment between management and smaller shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Peapack-Gladstone Financial Tell Us?

An insider sold Peapack-Gladstone Financial shares recently, but they didn't buy any. And there weren't any purchases to give us comfort, over the last year. While insiders do own shares, they don't own a heap, and they have been selling. So we'd only buy after careful consideration. 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. At Simply Wall St, we found 2 warning signs for Peapack-Gladstone Financial that deserve your attention before buying any shares.

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 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.