Robert Pittman Bought 9.2% More Shares In iHeartMedia

Investors who take an interest in iHeartMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:IHRT) should definitely note that the Chairman & CEO, Robert Pittman, recently paid US$1.60 per share to buy US$320k worth of the stock. Although the purchase only increased their holding by 9.2%, it is still a solid purchase in our view.

Check out our latest analysis for iHeartMedia

iHeartMedia Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Notably, that recent purchase by Robert Pittman is the biggest insider purchase of iHeartMedia shares that we've seen in the last year. That means that an insider was happy to buy shares at around the current price of US$1.64. Of course they may have changed their mind. But this suggests they are optimistic. While we always like to see insider buying, it's less meaningful if the purchases were made at much lower prices, as the opportunity they saw may have passed. Happily, the iHeartMedia insiders decided to buy shares at close to current prices.

In the last twelve months insiders purchased 300.00k shares for US$499k. But insiders sold 40.22k shares worth US$96k. Overall, iHeartMedia insiders were net buyers during the last year. 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!

There are plenty of other companies that have insiders buying up shares. You probably do not want to miss this free list of undervalued small cap companies that insiders are buying.

Does iHeartMedia Boast High Insider Ownership?

Another way to test the alignment between the leaders of a company and other shareholders is to look at how many shares they own. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. From our data, it seems that iHeartMedia insiders own 2.9% of the company, worth about US$7.3m. Whilst better than nothing, we're not overly impressed by these holdings.

So What Do The iHeartMedia Insider Transactions Indicate?

It is good to see recent purchasing. And the longer term insider transactions also give us confidence. But we don't feel the same about the fact the company is making losses. While the overall levels of insider ownership are below what we'd like to see, the history of transactions imply that iHeartMedia insiders are reasonably well aligned, and optimistic for the future. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing iHeartMedia. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 3 warning signs for iHeartMedia (of which 2 are significant!) you should know about.

Of course iHeartMedia 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.

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.