Don't Ignore The Fact That This Insider Just Sold Some Shares In Heritage Global Inc. (NASDAQ:HGBL)

We wouldn't blame Heritage Global Inc. (NASDAQ:HGBL) shareholders if they were a little worried about the fact that Allan Silber, a company insider, recently netted about US$1.3m selling shares at an average price of US$2.68. That's a big disposal, and it decreased their holding size by 21%, which is notable but not too bad.

Check out our latest analysis for Heritage Global

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Heritage Global

In fact, the recent sale by Allan Silber was the biggest sale of Heritage Global shares made by an insider individual in the last twelve months, according to our records. So we know that an insider sold shares at around the present share price of US$2.86. While we don't usually like to see insider selling, it's more concerning if the sales take place at a lower price. Given that the sale took place at around current prices, it makes us a little cautious but is hardly a major concern.

In the last twelve months insiders purchased 107.64k shares for US$143k. But they sold 1.13m shares for US$2.0m. Allan Silber sold a total of 1.13m shares over the year at an average price of US$1.80. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

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

Does Heritage Global Boast High 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. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. Heritage Global insiders own about US$17m worth of shares. That equates to 16% of the company. We've certainly seen higher levels of insider ownership elsewhere, but these holdings are enough to suggest alignment between insiders and the other shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Heritage Global Tell Us?

An insider sold Heritage Global shares recently, but they didn't buy any. Zooming out, the longer term picture doesn't give us much comfort. But it is good to see that Heritage Global is growing earnings. Insider ownership isn't particularly high, so this analysis makes us cautious about the company. We'd practice some caution before buying! While we like knowing 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 2 warning signs (1 shouldn't be ignored!) that you ought to be aware of before buying any shares in Heritage Global.

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of interesting 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.