Insiders who sold Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc. (NYSE:APAM) earlier this year probably made the right call as market cap dropped by US$116m

Insiders at Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc. (NYSE:APAM) sold US$354k worth of stock at an average price of US$36.11 a share over the past year, making the most of their investment. The company's market worth decreased by US$116m over the past week after the stock price dropped 5.3%, although insiders were able to minimize their losses

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.

Check out our latest analysis for Artisan Partners Asset Management

Artisan Partners Asset Management Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the Executive VP & COO, Samuel Sellers, sold US$354k worth of shares at a price of US$36.11 per share. While we don't usually like to see insider selling, it's more concerning if the sales take place at a lower price. The silver lining is that this sell-down took place above the latest price (US$30.30). So it may not shed much light on insider confidence at current levels. Samuel Sellers was the only individual insider to sell shares in the last twelve months.

You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last 12 months, below. 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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Insiders At Artisan Partners Asset Management Have Sold Stock Recently

Over the last three months, we've seen significant insider selling at Artisan Partners Asset Management. Specifically, Executive VP & COO Samuel Sellers ditched US$354k worth of shares in that time, and we didn't record any purchases whatsoever. This may suggest that some insiders think that the shares are not cheap.

Insider Ownership

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. It appears that Artisan Partners Asset Management insiders own 3.1% of the company, worth about US$75m. 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 Does This Data Suggest About Artisan Partners Asset Management Insiders?

An insider hasn't bought Artisan Partners Asset Management 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. While insiders do own shares, they don't own a heap, and they have been selling. 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. You'd be interested to know, that we found 2 warning signs for Artisan Partners Asset Management and we suggest you have a look.

If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity 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, 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.