Alpha Teknova Reaches US$257m Market Cap Benefiting Insider Stock Buying

Alpha Teknova, Inc. (NASDAQ:TKNO) insiders who purchased shares in the last 12 months were richly rewarded last week. The stock climbed by 11% resulting in a US$28m addition to the company’s market value. In other words, the original US$156.2k purchase is now worth US$678.8k.

Although we don't think shareholders should simply follow insider transactions, logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares.

View our latest analysis for Alpha Teknova

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Alpha Teknova

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by President Stephen Gunstream for US$100k worth of shares, at about US$1.24 per share. We do like to see buying, but this purchase was made at well below the current price of US$5.45. Because it occurred at a lower valuation, it doesn't tell us much about whether insiders might find today's price attractive.

Alpha Teknova insiders may have bought shares in the last year, but they didn't sell any. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

There are always plenty of stocks that insiders are buying. If investing in lesser known companies is your style, you could take a look at this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).

Insider Ownership Of Alpha Teknova

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. It appears that Alpha Teknova insiders own 13% of the company, worth about US$34m. This level of insider ownership is good but just short of being particularly stand-out. It certainly does suggest a reasonable degree of alignment.

So What Do The Alpha Teknova Insider Transactions Indicate?

There haven't been any insider transactions in the last three months -- that doesn't mean much. On a brighter note, the transactions over the last year are encouraging. Overall we don't see anything to make us think Alpha Teknova insiders are doubting the company, and they do own shares. 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. Be aware that Alpha Teknova is showing 3 warning signs in our investment analysis, and 1 of those is concerning...

Of course Alpha Teknova 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.

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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.