Oppenheimer Holdings Insiders Sold US$526k Of Shares Suggesting Hesitancy

A number of Oppenheimer Holdings Inc. (NYSE:OPY) insiders sold their shares in the last year, which may have raised concerns among investors. Knowing whether insiders are buying is usually more helpful when evaluating insider transactions, as insider selling can have various explanations. However, if numerous insiders are selling, shareholders should investigate more.

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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Oppenheimer Holdings Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

The Executive VP, Dennis McNamara, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$308k worth of shares at a price of US$51.28 each. That means that an insider was selling shares at slightly below the current price (US$53.08). We generally consider it a negative if insiders have been selling, especially if they did so below the current price, because it implies that they considered a lower price to be reasonable. Please do note, however, that sellers may have a variety of reasons for selling, so we don't know for sure what they think of the stock price. It is worth noting that this sale was only 22% of Dennis McNamara's holding.

Over the last year, we can see that insiders have bought 276.41 shares worth US$14k. On the other hand they divested 10.88k shares, for US$526k. All up, insiders sold more shares in Oppenheimer Holdings than they bought, over the last year. They sold for an average price of about US$48.35. It's not too encouraging to see that insiders have sold at below the current price. Of course, the sales could be motivated for a multitude of reasons, so we shouldn't jump to conclusions. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

See our latest analysis for Oppenheimer Holdings

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Does Oppenheimer Holdings Boast High Insider Ownership?

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. It's great to see that Oppenheimer Holdings insiders own 44% of the company, worth about US$260m. This kind of significant ownership by insiders does generally increase the chance that the company is run in the interest of all shareholders.

So What Does This Data Suggest About Oppenheimer Holdings Insiders?

The fact that there have been no Oppenheimer Holdings insider transactions recently certainly doesn't bother us. It's great to see high levels of insider ownership, but looking back over the last year, we don't gain confidence from the Oppenheimer Holdings insiders selling. So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. While conducting our analysis, we found that Oppenheimer Holdings has 2 warning signs and it would be unwise to ignore these.

But note: Oppenheimer Holdings 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.