Trade Alert: Independent Lead Director Of PENN Entertainment Barbara Z. Kohn Has Sold Stock \

Some PENN Entertainment, Inc. (NASDAQ:PENN) shareholders may be a little concerned to see that the Independent Lead Director, Barbara Z. Kohn, recently sold a substantial US$810k worth of stock at a price of US$26.62 per share. That diminished their holding by a very significant 50%, which arguably implies a strong desire to reallocate capital.

View our latest analysis for PENN Entertainment

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At PENN Entertainment

In fact, the recent sale by Barbara Z. Kohn was the biggest sale of PENN Entertainment shares made by an insider individual in the last twelve months, according to our records. So what is clear is that an insider saw fit to sell at around the current price of US$24.84. While insider selling is a negative, to us, it is more negative if the shares are sold at a lower price. We note that this sale took place at around the current price, so it isn't a major concern, though it's hardly a good sign.

You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

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

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. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. It appears that PENN Entertainment insiders own 0.8% of the company, worth about US$31m. We've certainly seen higher levels of insider ownership elsewhere, but these holdings are enough to suggest alignment between insiders and the other shareholders.

So What Do The PENN Entertainment Insider Transactions Indicate?

An insider hasn't bought PENN Entertainment stock in the last three months, but there was some selling. And there weren't any purchases to give us comfort, over the last year. But it is good to see that PENN Entertainment is growing earnings. Insiders own shares, but we're still pretty cautious, given the history of sales. We'd practice some caution before buying! So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. For instance, we've identified 2 warning signs for PENN Entertainment (1 is potentially serious) you should be aware of.

Of course PENN Entertainment 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, but not derivative transactions.

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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.