Have Applied Industrial Technologies Insiders Been Selling Stock?

Some Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) shareholders may be a little concerned to see that insider Warren Hoffner recently sold a substantial US$1.1m worth of stock at a price of US$282 per share. However, it's crucial to note that they remain very much invested in the stock and that sale only reduced their holding by 6.6%.

See our latest analysis for Applied Industrial Technologies

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Applied Industrial Technologies

The President, Neil Schrimsher, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$16m worth of shares at a price of US$170 each. That means that an insider was selling shares at slightly below the current price (US$277). As a general rule we consider it to be discouraging when insiders are selling below the current price, because it suggests they were happy with a lower valuation. 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 only 32% of Neil Schrimsher's holding.

In the last year Applied Industrial Technologies insiders didn't buy any company stock. 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!

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Insider Ownership Of Applied Industrial Technologies

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. Applied Industrial Technologies insiders own about US$100m worth of shares (which is 1.0% of the company). This kind of significant ownership by insiders does generally increase the chance that the company is run in the interest of all shareholders.

So What Do The Applied Industrial Technologies Insider Transactions Indicate?

Insiders sold stock recently, but they haven't been buying. And there weren't any purchases to give us comfort, over the last year. But it is good to see that Applied Industrial Technologies is growing earnings. While insiders do own a lot of shares in the company (which is good), our analysis of their transactions doesn't make us feel confident about the company. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Applied Industrial Technologies. You'd be interested to know, that we found 1 warning sign for Applied Industrial Technologies and we suggest you have a look.

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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.