Have CNA Financial Insiders Been Selling Stock?

Some CNA Financial Corporation (NYSE:CNA) shareholders may be a little concerned to see that the Executive VP & Global Head of Underwriting, Douglas Worman, recently sold a substantial US$1.1m worth of stock at a price of US$48.75 per share. That sale reduced their total holding by 15% which is hardly insignificant, but far from the worst we've seen.

View our latest analysis for CNA Financial

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At CNA Financial

The Executive VP & Chief Human Resources Officer, Elizabeth Aguinaga, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$1.3m worth of shares at a price of US$49.60 each. So what is clear is that an insider saw fit to sell at around the current price of US$48.99. While we don't usually like to see insider selling, it's more concerning if the sales take place at a lower price. Given that the sale took place at around current prices, it makes us a little cautious but is hardly a major concern.

In the last year CNA Financial insiders didn't buy any company stock. 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!

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).

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. CNA Financial insiders own about US$79m worth of shares. That equates to 0.6% 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.

So What Does This Data Suggest About CNA Financial Insiders?

Insiders sold CNA Financial shares recently, but they didn't buy any. And even if we look at the last year, we didn't see any purchases. On the plus side, CNA Financial makes money, and is growing profits. Insiders own shares, but we're still pretty cautious, given the history of sales. We'd practice some caution before buying! In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing CNA Financial. At Simply Wall St, we found 2 warning signs for CNA Financial that deserve your attention before buying any shares.

If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity 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.