Have Coca-Cola Insiders Been Selling Stock?

We wouldn't blame The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) shareholders if they were a little worried about the fact that James Robert Quincey, the Chairman & CEO recently netted about US$6.4m selling shares at an average price of US$64.03. That's a big disposal, and it decreased their holding size by 20%, which is notable but not too bad.

See our latest analysis for Coca-Cola

Coca-Cola Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Notably, that recent sale by Chairman & CEO James Robert Quincey was not the only time they sold Coca-Cola shares this year. They previously made an even bigger sale of -US$15m worth of shares at a price of US$60.94 per share. So it's clear an insider wanted to take some cash off the table, even below the current price of US$63.00. 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. However, while insider selling is sometimes discouraging, it's only a weak signal. We note that the biggest single sale was only 33% of James Robert Quincey's holding.

Insiders in Coca-Cola didn't buy any shares in the last year. 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!

For those who like to find hidden gems this free list of small cap companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

Insider Ownership

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. Coca-Cola insiders own 0.7% of the company, currently worth about US$1.8b based on the recent share price. 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 Do The Coca-Cola Insider Transactions Indicate?

An insider hasn't bought Coca-Cola 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. It is good to see high insider ownership, but the insider selling leaves us cautious. So while it's helpful to know what insiders are doing in terms of buying or selling, it's also helpful to know the risks that a particular company is facing. Our analysis shows 3 warning signs for Coca-Cola (1 is a bit unpleasant!) and we strongly recommend you look at them before investing.

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 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.