Have Insiders Been Selling Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LTRP.A) Shares?

We often see insiders buying up shares in companies that perform well over the long term. On the other hand, we'd be remiss not to mention that insider sales have been known to precede tough periods for a business. So shareholders might well want to know whether insiders have been buying or selling shares in Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LTRP.A).

Do Insider Transactions Matter?

It is perfectly legal for company insiders, including board members, to buy and sell stock in a company. However, such insiders must disclose their trading activities, and not trade on inside information.

We don't think shareholders should simply follow insider transactions. But logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares. As Peter Lynch said, 'insiders might sell their shares for any number of reasons, but they buy them for only one: they think the price will rise'.

See our latest analysis for Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider sale was by the Independent Director, J. Wargo, for US$357k worth of shares, at about US$2.84 per share. That means that even when the share price was below the current price of US$4.93, an insider wanted to cash in some shares. As a general rule we consider it to be discouraging when insiders are selling below the current price, because it suggests they were happy with a lower 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. This single sale was 99% of J. Wargo's stake.

Insiders in Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings didn't buy any shares in the last year. 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!

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Insiders at Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings Have Sold Stock Recently

The last three months saw some Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings insider selling. Senior VP & CFO Brian Wendling sold just US$26k worth of shares in that time. It's not great to see insider selling, nor the lack of recent buyers. But the volume sold is so low that it really doesn't bother us.

Does Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings Boast High Insider Ownership?

For a common shareholder, it is worth checking how many shares are held by company insiders. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. It appears that Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings insiders own 3.9% of the company, worth about US$17m. 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 Do The Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings Insider Transactions Indicate?

We did not see any insider buying in the last three months, but we did see selling. However, the sales are not big enough to concern us at all. We're a little cautious about the insider selling at Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings. But it's good to see that insiders own shares in the company. While we like knowing 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 Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings has 2 warning signs (1 shouldn't be ignored!) that deserve your attention before going any further with your analysis.

Of course Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings 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, but not derivative transactions.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. 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.
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