Advance Auto Parts Insiders Placed Bullish Bets Worth US$748.8k

Generally, when a single insider buys stock, it is usually not a big deal. However, when several insiders are buying, like in the case of Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP), it sends a favourable message to the company's shareholders.

While we would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing, logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares.

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The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Advance Auto Parts

The Independent Chairman Eugene Lee made the biggest insider purchase in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$500k worth of shares at a price of US$34.15 each. Although we like to see insider buying, we note that this large purchase was at significantly below the recent price of US$46.50. 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.

Over the last year, we can see that insiders have bought 21.11k shares worth US$749k. On the other hand they divested 1.28k shares, for US$56k. Overall, Advance Auto Parts insiders were net buyers during the last year. 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!

Check out our latest analysis for Advance Auto Parts

Advance Auto Parts is not the only stock that insiders are buying. For those who like to find small cap companies at attractive valuations, this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

Does Advance Auto Parts Boast High Insider Ownership?

Another way to test the alignment between the leaders of a company and other shareholders is to look at how many shares they own. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. Insiders own 0.7% of Advance Auto Parts shares, worth about US$20m. 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 Does This Data Suggest About Advance Auto Parts Insiders?

There haven't been any insider transactions in the last three months -- that doesn't mean much. However, our analysis of transactions over the last year is heartening. Overall we don't see anything to make us think Advance Auto Parts insiders are doubting the company, and they do own shares. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Advance Auto Parts. While conducting our analysis, we found that Advance Auto Parts has 2 warning signs and it would be unwise to ignore them.

Of course Advance Auto Parts 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.