Bullish comScore Insider Buying Worth US$1.11m Yet To Pay Off

Insiders who bought US$1.11m worth of comScore, Inc.'s (NASDAQ:SCOR) stock at an average buy price of US$17.67 over the last year may be disappointed by the recent 14% decrease in the stock. Insiders buy with the expectation to see their investments rise in value over a period of time. However, recent losses have rendered their above investment worth US$999.6k which is not ideal.

While we would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.

Check out our latest analysis for comScore

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At comScore

Notably, that recent purchase by Matthew McLaughlin is the biggest insider purchase of comScore shares that we've seen in the last year. That means that even when the share price was higher than US$15.88 (the recent price), an insider wanted to purchase shares. While their view may have changed since the purchase was made, this does at least suggest they have had confidence in the company's future. In our view, the price an insider pays for shares is very important. It is generally more encouraging if they paid above the current price, as it suggests they saw value, even at higher levels.

While comScore insiders bought shares during the last year, they didn't sell. 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 growing companies that insiders are buying.

comScore Insiders Bought Stock Recently

Over the last quarter, comScore insiders have spent a meaningful amount on shares. Not only was there no selling that we can see, but they collectively bought US$509k worth of shares. That shows some optimism about the company's future.

Insider Ownership Of comScore

Looking at the total insider shareholdings in a company can help to inform your view of whether they are well aligned with common shareholders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. Insiders own 8.0% of comScore shares, worth about US$6.2m, according to our data. Overall, this level of ownership isn't that impressive, but it's certainly better than nothing!

What Might The Insider Transactions At comScore Tell Us?

It's certainly positive to see the recent insider purchases. We also take confidence from the longer term picture of insider transactions. But on the other hand, the company made a loss during the last year, which makes us a little cautious. On this analysis the only slight negative we see is the fairly low (overall) insider ownership; their transactions suggest that they are quite positive on comScore stock. 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. In terms of investment risks, we've identified 3 warning signs with comScore and understanding them should be part of your investment process.

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.