The Executive Chairman & CEO of Medifast, Inc. (NYSE:MED), Daniel Chard, Just Bought A Few More Shares

Whilst it may not be a huge deal, we thought it was good to see that the Medifast, Inc. (NYSE:MED) Executive Chairman & CEO, Daniel Chard, recently bought US$79k worth of stock, for US$183 per share. Although the purchase is not a big one, by either a percentage standpoint or absolute value, it can be seen as a good sign.

See our latest analysis for Medifast

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Medifast

In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the Independent Director, Scott Schlackman, sold US$310k worth of shares at a price of US$312 per share. We generally don't like to see insider selling, but the lower the sale price, the more it concerns us. The silver lining is that this sell-down took place above the latest price (US$175). So it may not shed much light on insider confidence at current levels.

In total, Medifast insiders sold more than they bought 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!

I will like Medifast better if I see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out this free list of growing companies with considerable, recent, insider buying.

Insider Ownership of Medifast

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. Medifast insiders own about US$80m worth of shares. That equates to 4.0% of the company. We've certainly seen higher levels of insider ownership elsewhere, but these holdings are enough to suggest alignment between insiders and the other shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Medifast Tell Us?

The insider sales have outweighed the insider buying, at Medifast, in the last three months. And our longer term analysis of insider transactions didn't bring confidence, either. But since Medifast is profitable and growing, we're not too worried by this. Insider ownership isn't particularly high, so this analysis makes us cautious about the company. We're in no rush to buy! So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. To assist with this, we've discovered 2 warning signs that you should run your eye over to get a better picture of Medifast.

But note: Medifast 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, but not derivative transactions.

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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.