Jed Milstein Is The Senior VP & Chief Human Resources Officer of Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) And They Just Sold 40% Of Their Shares

We wouldn't blame Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) shareholders if they were a little worried about the fact that Jed Milstein, the Senior VP & Chief Human Resources Officer recently netted about US$808k selling shares at an average price of US$195. That's a big disposal, and it decreased their holding size by 40%, which is notable but not too bad.

See our latest analysis for Asbury Automotive Group

Asbury Automotive Group Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

The President, David Hult, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$4.9m worth of shares at a price of US$199 each. So we know that an insider sold shares at around the present share price of US$192. While insider selling is a negative, to us, it is more negative if the shares are sold at a lower price. We note that this sale took place at around the current price, so it isn't a major concern, though it's hardly a good sign.

Asbury Automotive Group insiders didn't buy any shares over the last year. 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!

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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. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. Insiders own 0.7% of Asbury Automotive Group shares, worth about US$28m. While this is a strong but not outstanding level of insider ownership, it's enough to indicate some alignment between management and smaller shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Asbury Automotive Group Tell Us?

Insiders sold Asbury Automotive Group shares recently, but they didn't buy any. And there weren't any purchases to give us comfort, over the last year. But it is good to see that Asbury Automotive Group is growing earnings. Insiders own shares, but we're still pretty cautious, given the history of sales. We're in no rush to buy! While we like knowing 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 Asbury Automotive Group is showing 4 warning signs in our investment analysis, and 1 of those shouldn't be ignored...

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of interesting 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, 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.