Don't Ignore The Fact That This Insider Just Sold Some Shares In Mesa Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:MLAB)

Some Mesa Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:MLAB) shareholders may be a little concerned to see that the Independent Director, Robert Dwyer, recently sold a whopping US$1.9m worth of stock at a price of US$259 per share. That sale reduced their total holding by 17% which is hardly insignificant, but far from the worst we've seen.

See our latest analysis for Mesa Laboratories

Mesa Laboratories Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Notably, that recent sale by Robert Dwyer is the biggest insider sale of Mesa Laboratories shares that we've seen in the last year. That means that an insider was selling shares at below the current price (US$262). 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. This single sale was just 17% of Robert Dwyer's stake.

Mesa Laboratories insiders didn't buy any shares over the last year. 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!

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Insider Ownership

Looking at the total insider shareholdings in a company can help to inform your view of whether they are well aligned with common shareholders. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. It appears that Mesa Laboratories insiders own 6.3% of the company, worth about US$72m. While this is a strong but not outstanding level of insider ownership, it's enough to indicate some alignment between management and smaller shareholders.

So What Do The Mesa Laboratories Insider Transactions Indicate?

Insiders sold Mesa Laboratories shares recently, but they didn't buy any. And there weren't any purchases to give us comfort, over the last year. Insider ownership isn't particularly high, so this analysis makes us cautious about the company. So we'd only buy after careful consideration. Of course, the future is what matters most. So if you are interested in Mesa Laboratories, you should check out this free report on analyst forecasts for the company.

Of course Mesa Laboratories may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of high quality 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, but not derivative transactions.

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.

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