Exagen CEO, President & Director Acquires 7.7% More Stock

Even if it's not a huge purchase, we think it was good to see that John Aballi, the CEO, President & Director of Exagen Inc. (NASDAQ:XGN) recently shelled out US$68k to buy stock, at US$2.81 per share. Although the purchase is not a big one, increasing their shareholding by only 7.7%, it can be interpreted as a good sign.

View our latest analysis for Exagen

Exagen Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

In fact, the recent purchase by CEO, President & Director John Aballi was not their only acquisition of Exagen shares this year. They previously made an even bigger purchase of US$78k worth of shares at a price of US$1.92 per share. Even though the purchase was made at a significantly lower price than the recent price (US$4.20), we still think insider buying is a positive. Because the shares were purchased at a lower price, this particular buy doesn't tell us much about how insiders feel about the current share price.

Happily, we note that in the last year insiders paid US$212k for 87.00k shares. But insiders sold 19.52k shares worth US$38k. Overall, Exagen insiders were net buyers during the last year. They paid about US$2.44 on average. We don't deny that it is nice to see insiders buying stock in the company. However, you should keep in mind that they bought when the share price was meaningfully below today's levels. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!

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 Exagen 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. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. Our data indicates that Exagen insiders own about US$8.0m worth of shares (which is 13% of the company). We do generally prefer see higher levels of insider ownership.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Exagen Tell Us?

The recent insider purchases are heartening. 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. We would certainly prefer see higher levels of insider ownership but analysis of the insider transactions suggests that Exagen insiders are expecting a bright future. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Exagen. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 3 warning signs for Exagen you should know about.

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.