Need To Know: Intellia Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTLA) Insiders Have Been Buying Shares

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We often see insiders buying up shares in companies that perform well over the long term. Unfortunately, there are also plenty of examples of share prices declining precipitously after insiders have sold shares. So before you buy or sell Intellia Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTLA), you may well want to know whether insiders have been buying or selling.

What Is Insider Selling?

Most investors know that it is quite permissible for company leaders, such as directors of the board, to buy and sell stock on the market. 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 it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing. For example, a Harvard University study found that 'insider purchases earn abnormal returns of more than 6% per year.'

Check out our latest analysis for Intellia Therapeutics

Intellia Therapeutics Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

In the last twelve months, the biggest single purchase by an insider was when Andrew Schiermeier bought US$118k worth of shares at a price of US$16.00 per share. That means that an insider was happy to buy shares at above the current price of US$14.82. Their view may have changed since then, but at least it shows they felt optimistic at the time. We always take careful note of the price insiders pay when purchasing shares. As a general rule, we feel more positive about a stock when an insider has bought shares at above current prices, because that suggests they viewed the stock as good value, even at a higher price. Andrew Schiermeier was the only individual insider to buy shares in the last twelve months.

You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by individuals) over the last 12 months, below. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

Intellia Therapeutics is not the only stock that insiders are buying. For those who like to find winning investments this freelist of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

Does Intellia Therapeutics Boast High Insider Ownership?

I like to look at how many shares insiders own in a company, to help inform my view of how aligned they are with insiders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. Intellia Therapeutics insiders own about US$13m worth of shares. That equates to 1.9% 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.

So What Do The Intellia Therapeutics Insider Transactions Indicate?

It is good to see the recent insider purchase. We also take confidence from the longer term picture of insider transactions. But we don't feel the same about the fact the company is making losses. Insiders likely see value in Intellia Therapeutics shares, given these transactions (along with notable insider ownership of the company). Therefore, you should should definitely take a look at this FREEreport showing analyst forecasts for Intellia Therapeutics.

But note: Intellia Therapeutics may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this freelist of interesting companies with high ROE and low debt.

We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. 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. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.