Need To Know: Concho Resources Inc. (NYSE:CXO) Insiders Have Been Selling Shares

It is not uncommon to see companies perform well in the years after insiders buy shares. On the other hand, we'd be remiss not to mention that insider sales have been known to precede tough periods for a business. So shareholders might well want to know whether insiders have been buying or selling shares in Concho Resources Inc. (NYSE:CXO).

What Is Insider Buying?

It is perfectly legal for company insiders, including board members, to buy and sell stock in a company. However, rules govern insider transactions, and certain disclosures are required.

Insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing. But equally, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether. For example, a Harvard University study found that 'insider purchases earn abnormal returns of more than 6% per year.'

Check out our latest analysis for Concho Resources

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Concho Resources

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider sale was by Special Advisor J. Guthrie for US$1.7m worth of shares, at about US$137 per share. Although we don't gain confidence from insider selling, we note that this large sale was at well above current price of US$108. So it is hard to draw any strong conclusion from it.

All up, insiders sold more shares in Concho Resources than they bought, over the last year. The sellers received a price of around US$137, on average. It is certainly not great to see that insiders have sold shares in the company. However, we do note that the average sale price was significantly higher than the current share price (which is US$108). The chart below shows insider transactions (by individuals) over the last year. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

If you like to buy stocks alongside management, then you might just love this freelist of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).

Does Concho Resources Boast High Insider Ownership?

I like to look at how many shares insiders own in a company, to help inform my view of how aligned they are with insiders. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. Concho Resources insiders own about US$227m worth of shares (which is 1.0% of the company). 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 Concho Resources Insider Transactions Indicate?

It doesn't really mean much that no insider has traded Concho Resources shares in the last quarter. It's great to see high levels of insider ownership, but looking back at the last year, we don't gain confidence from the Concho Resources insiders selling. Of course, the future is what matters most. So if you are interested in Concho Resources, you should check out this freereport on analyst forecasts for the company.

But note: Concho Resources may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this freelist of interesting companies with high ROE and low debt.

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If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.