Trade Alert: Lead Independent Director Of Stifel Financial David Peacock Has Sold Stock

We wouldn't blame Stifel Financial Corp. (NYSE:SF) shareholders if they were a little worried about the fact that David Peacock, the Lead Independent Director recently netted about US$1.3m selling shares at an average price of US$99.83. Probably the most concerning element of the whole transaction is that the disposal amounted to 61% of their entire holding.

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Stifel Financial Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

The Senior VP & COO, David Sliney, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$2.9m worth of shares at a price of US$116 each. We generally don't like to see insider selling, but the lower the sale price, the more it concerns us. The good news is that this large sale was at well above current price of US$99.30. So it may not shed much light on insider confidence at current levels.

Stifel Financial insiders didn't buy any shares over the last year. 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!

View our latest analysis for Stifel Financial

If you are like me, then you will not want to miss this free list of small cap stocks that are not only being bought by insiders but also have attractive valuations.

Insider Ownership Of Stifel Financial

For a common shareholder, it is worth checking how many shares are held by company insiders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. Stifel Financial insiders own 3.3% of the company, currently worth about US$335m based on the recent share price. I like to see this level of insider ownership, because it increases the chances that management are thinking about the best interests of shareholders.

So What Do The Stifel Financial Insider Transactions Indicate?

An insider hasn't bought Stifel Financial stock in the last three months, but there was some selling. Looking to the last twelve months, our data doesn't show any insider buying. On the plus side, Stifel Financial makes money, and is growing profits. While insiders do own a lot of shares in the company (which is good), our analysis of their transactions doesn't make us feel confident about the company. While it's good to be aware of 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. Case in point: We've spotted 1 warning sign for Stifel Financial you should be aware of.

But note: Stifel Financial 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.