40% Of This CVS Health Insider's Holdings Were Sold

From what we can see, insiders were net sellers in CVS Health Corporation's (NYSE:CVS ) during the past 12 months. That is, insiders sold the stock in greater numbers than they purchased it.

While we would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing, logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares.

Check out our latest analysis for CVS Health

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At CVS Health

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider sale was by the Executive VP, Prem Shah, for US$2.3m worth of shares, at about US$76.95 per share. While we don't usually like to see insider selling, it's more concerning if the sales take place at a lower price. The silver lining is that this sell-down took place above the latest price (US$58.75). So it may not shed much light on insider confidence at current levels. Prem Shah was the only individual insider to sell shares in the last twelve months.

Happily, we note that in the last year insiders paid US$695k for 12.18k shares. But insiders sold 29.47k shares worth US$2.3m. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!

If you like to buy stocks that insiders are buying, rather than selling, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: Most of them are flying under the radar).

Does CVS Health Boast High Insider Ownership?

Another way to test the alignment between the leaders of a company and other shareholders is to look at how many shares they own. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. CVS Health insiders own about US$111m worth of shares (which is 0.1% 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 Does This Data Suggest About CVS Health Insiders?

There haven't been any insider transactions in the last three months -- that doesn't mean much. It's great to see high levels of insider ownership, but looking back over the last year, we don't gain confidence from the CVS Health 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. You'd be interested to know, that we found 1 warning sign for CVS Health and we suggest you have a look.

But note: CVS Health 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.