Have Insiders Sold Ryerson Holding Shares Recently?

Anyone interested in Ryerson Holding Corporation (NYSE:RYI) should probably be aware that the President, Edward Lehner, recently divested US$248k worth of shares in the company, at an average price of US$24.79 each. On the bright side, that sale was only 1.7% of their holding, so we doubt it's very meaningful, on its own.

Check out our latest analysis for Ryerson Holding

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Ryerson Holding

In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the insider, Alagu Sundarrajan, sold US$327k worth of shares at a price of US$32.97 per share. We generally don't like to see insider selling, but the lower the sale price, the more it concerns us. The good news is that this large sale was at well above current price of US$23.96. So it may not tell us anything about how insiders feel about the current share price.

Happily, we note that in the last year insiders paid US$145k for 6.13k shares. On the other hand they divested 39.36k shares, for US$1.1m. Over the last year we saw more insider selling of Ryerson Holding shares, than buying. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

If you are like me, then you will not want to miss this free list of small cap stocks that are not only being bought by insiders but also have attractive valuations.

Insider Ownership Of Ryerson Holding

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. Ryerson Holding insiders own about US$30m worth of shares. That equates to 3.9% of the company. 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 Ryerson Holding Tell Us?

Insiders sold Ryerson Holding shares recently, but they didn't buy any. Zooming out, the longer term picture doesn't give us much comfort. Insider ownership isn't particularly high, so this analysis makes us cautious about the company. So we'd only buy after careful consideration. While it's good to be aware of what's going on with the insider's ownership and transactions, we make sure to also consider what risks are facing a stock before making any investment decision. At Simply Wall St, we've found that Ryerson Holding has 3 warning signs (1 is a bit unpleasant!) that deserve your attention before going any further with your analysis.

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.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.

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.