Owens Corning Insiders Sold US$1.2m Of Shares Suggesting Hesitancy

The fact that multiple Owens Corning (NYSE:OC) insiders offloaded a considerable amount of shares over the past year could have raised some eyebrows amongst investors. When evaluating insider transactions, knowing whether insiders are buying versus if they selling is usually more beneficial, as the latter can be open to many interpretations. However, shareholders should take a deeper look if several insiders are selling stock over a specific time period.

While insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.

View our latest analysis for Owens Corning

Owens Corning Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

The Executive VP & CFO, Todd Fister, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$732k worth of shares at a price of US$136 each. That means that an insider was selling shares at slightly below the current price (US$139). 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. It is worth noting that this sale was only 17% of Todd Fister's holding.

In the last year Owens Corning insiders didn't buy any company stock. You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last 12 months, below. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!

If you are like me, then you will not want to miss this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying.

Owens Corning Insiders Are Selling The Stock

Over the last three months, we've seen a bit of insider selling at Owens Corning. Independent Director W. Morris divested only US$43k worth of shares in that time. It's not great to see insider selling, nor the lack of recent buyers. But the volume sold is so low that it really doesn't bother us.

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. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. Owens Corning insiders own about US$67m worth of shares. That equates to 0.5% of the company. While this is a strong but not outstanding level of insider ownership, it's enough to indicate some alignment between management and smaller shareholders.

So What Do The Owens Corning Insider Transactions Indicate?

While there has not been any insider buying in the last three months, there has been selling. But the sales were small, so we're not concerned. Recent insider selling makes us a little nervous, in light of the broader picture of Owens Corning insider transactions. But it's good to see that insiders own shares in the company. Of course, the future is what matters most. So if you are interested in Owens Corning, you should check out this free report on analyst forecasts for the company.

Of course Owens Corning may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of high quality companies.

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.