This Ginkgo Bioworks Holdings Insider Reduced Their Stake By 45%

Viewing insider transactions for Ginkgo Bioworks Holdings, Inc.'s (NYSE:DNA ) over the last year, we see that insiders were net sellers. This means that a larger number of shares were sold by insiders in relation to shares purchased.

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.

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The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Ginkgo Bioworks Holdings

Notably, that recent sale by Christian O. Henry is the biggest insider sale of Ginkgo Bioworks Holdings shares that we've seen in the last year. While insider selling is a negative, to us, it is more negative if the shares are sold at a lower price. The silver lining is that this sell-down took place above the latest price (US$10.01). So it may not tell us anything about how insiders feel about the current share price.

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!

Check out our latest analysis for Ginkgo Bioworks Holdings

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Insiders At Ginkgo Bioworks Holdings Have Sold Stock Recently

The last quarter saw substantial insider selling of Ginkgo Bioworks Holdings shares. In total, Independent Director Christian O. Henry dumped US$220k worth of shares in that time, and we didn't record any purchases whatsoever. In light of this it's hard to argue that all the insiders think that the shares are a bargain.

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. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. Ginkgo Bioworks Holdings insiders own about US$97m worth of shares. That equates to 17% of the company. We've certainly seen higher levels of insider ownership elsewhere, but these holdings are enough to suggest alignment between insiders and the other shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Ginkgo Bioworks Holdings Tell Us?

An insider sold Ginkgo Bioworks Holdings shares recently, but they didn't buy any. Looking to the last twelve months, our data doesn't show any insider buying. While insiders do own shares, they don't own a heap, and they have been selling. So we'd only buy after careful consideration. So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. At Simply Wall St, we found 3 warning signs for Ginkgo Bioworks Holdings that deserve your attention before buying any shares.

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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.