Have Assured Guaranty Insiders Been Selling Stock?

Some Assured Guaranty Ltd. (NYSE:AGO) shareholders may be a little concerned to see that the Deputy Chairman, Dominic Frederico, recently sold a substantial US$7.1m worth of stock at a price of US$86.11 per share. However, that sale only accounted for 5.0% of their holding, so arguably it doesn't say much about their conviction.

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Assured Guaranty Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

In fact, the recent sale by Dominic Frederico was the biggest sale of Assured Guaranty shares made by an insider individual in the last twelve months, according to our records. So what is clear is that an insider saw fit to sell at around the current price of US$83.95. We generally don't like to see insider selling, but the lower the sale price, the more it concerns us. We note that this sale took place at around the current price, so it isn't a major concern, though it's hardly a good sign.

Assured Guaranty insiders didn't buy any shares over the last year. 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!

See our latest analysis for Assured Guaranty

I will like Assured Guaranty better if I see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out this free list of undervalued and small cap stocks with considerable, recent, insider buying.

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. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. Assured Guaranty insiders own about US$230m worth of shares (which is 5.6% of the company). Most shareholders would be happy to see this sort of insider ownership, since it suggests that management incentives are well aligned with other shareholders.

So What Do The Assured Guaranty Insider Transactions Indicate?

Insiders sold stock recently, but they haven't been buying. And even if we look at the last year, we didn't see any purchases. While insiders do own a lot of shares in the company (which is good), our analysis of their transactions doesn't make us feel confident about the company. 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 Assured Guaranty (1 is a bit unpleasant!) and we strongly recommend you look at these 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.