Ameresco Insiders Added US$2.27m Of Stock To Their Holdings

Over the last year, a good number of insiders have significantly increased their holdings in Ameresco, Inc. (NYSE:AMRC). This is encouraging because it indicates that insiders are more optimistic about the company's prospects.

While insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing, we do think it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing.

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The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Ameresco

In the last twelve months, the biggest single purchase by an insider was when Founder George Sakellaris bought US$1.2m worth of shares at a price of US$9.96 per share. Although we like to see insider buying, we note that this large purchase was at significantly below the recent price of US$16.27. Because the shares were purchased at a lower price, this particular buy doesn't tell us much about how insiders feel about the current share price.

In the last twelve months Ameresco insiders were buying shares, but not selling. They paid about US$13.11 on average. We don't deny that it is nice to see insiders buying stock in the company. But we must note that the investments were made at well below today's share price. 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!

See our latest analysis for Ameresco

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).

Insider Ownership Of Ameresco

Another way to test the alignment between the leaders of a company and other shareholders is to look at how many shares they own. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. Ameresco insiders own 42% of the company, currently worth about US$355m based on the recent share price. Most shareholders would be happy to see this sort of insider ownership, since it suggests that management incentives are well aligned with other shareholders.

So What Does This Data Suggest About Ameresco Insiders?

There haven't been any insider transactions in the last three months -- that doesn't mean much. On a brighter note, the transactions over the last year are encouraging. It would be great to see more insider buying, but overall it seems like Ameresco insiders are reasonably well aligned (owning significant chunk of the company's shares) and optimistic for the future. While it's good to be aware of what's going on with the insider's ownership and transactions, we make sure to also consider what risks are facing a stock before making any investment decision. To help with this, we've discovered 3 warning signs (1 is a bit concerning!) that you ought to be aware of before buying any shares in Ameresco.

But note: Ameresco 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 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.