This Insider Has Just Sold Shares In Ascent Industries

Anyone interested in Ascent Industries Co. (NASDAQ:ACNT) should probably be aware that the Director, Christopher Hutter, recently divested US$183k worth of shares in the company, at an average price of US$12.16 each. However, the silver lining is that the sale only reduced their total holding by 2.4%, so we're hesitant to read anything much into it, on its own.

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The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Ascent Industries

In fact, the recent sale by Christopher Hutter was the biggest sale of Ascent Industries shares made by an insider individual in the last twelve months, according to our records. That means that even when the share price was below the current price of US$12.90, an insider wanted to cash in some shares. When an insider sells below the current price, it suggests that they considered that lower price to be fair. That makes us wonder what they think of the (higher) recent valuation. While insider selling is not a positive sign, we can't be sure if it does mean insiders think the shares are fully valued, so it's only a weak sign. We note that the biggest single sale was only 2.4% of Christopher Hutter's holding.

Over the last year, we can see that insiders have bought 49.43k shares worth US$488k. But insiders sold 15.01k shares worth US$183k. In total, Ascent Industries insiders bought more than they sold over the last year. Their average price was about US$9.86. We don't deny that it is nice to see insiders buying stock in the company. However, you should keep in mind that they bought when the share price was meaningfully below today's levels. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!

View our latest analysis for Ascent Industries

There are always plenty of stocks that insiders are buying. If investing in lesser known companies is your style, you could take a look at this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).

Insider Ownership Of Ascent Industries

For a common shareholder, it is worth checking how many shares are held by company 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. It appears that Ascent Industries insiders own 18% of the company, worth about US$23m. While this is a strong but not outstanding level of insider ownership, it's enough to indicate some alignment between management and smaller shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Ascent Industries Tell Us?

Unfortunately, there has been more insider selling of Ascent Industries stock, than buying, in the last three months. On the other hand, the insider transactions over the last year are encouraging. We like that insiders own a fair amount of the company. So the recent selling doesn't worry us too much. 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. When we did our research, we found 2 warning signs for Ascent Industries (1 makes us a bit uncomfortable!) that we believe deserve your full attention.

Of course Ascent Industries 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 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.