Insiders at Crown Castle Inc. (NYSE:CCI) sold US$3.7m worth of stock, possibly indicating weakness in the future

The fact that multiple Crown Castle Inc. (NYSE:CCI) insiders offloaded a considerable amount of shares over the past year could have raised some eyebrows amongst investors. When evaluating insider transactions, knowing whether insiders are buying versus if they selling is usually more beneficial, as the latter can be open to many interpretations. However, when multiple insiders sell stock over a specific duration, shareholders should take notice as that could possibly be a red flag.

While insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing, we do think it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing.

View our latest analysis for Crown Castle

Crown Castle Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider sale was by the Executive VP & COO of Fiber, Christopher Levendos, for US$2.1m worth of shares, at about US$193 per share. While insider selling is a negative, to us, it is more negative if the shares are sold at a lower price. It's of some comfort that this sale was conducted at a price well above the current share price, which is US$145. So it may not shed much light on insider confidence at current levels.

Happily, we note that in the last year insiders paid US$843k for 5.91k shares. But they sold 19.50k shares for US$3.7m. All up, insiders sold more shares in Crown Castle than they bought, over the last year. The sellers received a price of around US$190, on average. We are not joyful about insider selling. However, we do note that the average sale price was significantly higher than the current share price (which is US$145). You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by companies and 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!

If you are like me, then you will not want to miss this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying.

Does Crown Castle Boast High Insider Ownership?

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. Crown Castle insiders own about US$299m worth of shares (which is 0.5% of the company). I like to see this level of insider ownership, because it increases the chances that management are thinking about the best interests of shareholders.

So What Does This Data Suggest About Crown Castle Insiders?

It doesn't really mean much that no insider has traded Crown Castle shares in the last quarter. It's heartening that insiders own plenty of stock, but we'd like to see more insider buying, since the last year of Crown Castle insider transactions don't fill us with confidence. 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. For example, Crown Castle has 3 warning signs (and 2 which don't sit too well with us) we think you should know about.

But note: Crown Castle may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with high ROE 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, but not derivative transactions.

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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.