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It is not uncommon to see companies perform well in the years after insiders buy shares. Unfortunately, there are also plenty of examples of share prices declining precipitously after insiders have sold shares. So before you buy or sell CSG Systems International, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSGS), you may well want to know whether insiders have been buying or selling.
What Is Insider Selling?
Most investors know that it is quite permissible for company leaders, such as directors of the board, to buy and sell stock on the market. However, rules govern insider transactions, and certain disclosures are required.
We would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing. But it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing. For example, a Harvard University study found that ‘insider purchases earn abnormal returns of more than 6% per year.’
See our latest analysis for CSG Systems International
The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At CSG Systems International
In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the Chairman of the Board, Donald Reed, sold US$313k worth of shares at a price of US$46.09 per share. That means that an insider was selling shares at around the current price of US$45.75. While we don’t usually like to see insider selling, it’s more concerning if the sales take price at a lower price. Given that the sale took place at around current prices, it makes us a little cautious but is hardly a major concern. The only individual insider seller over the last year was Donald Reed.
Donald Reed sold a total of 7000 shares over the year at an average price of US$46.09. You can see the insider transactions (by individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!
If you are like me, then you will not want to miss this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying.
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. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. It appears that CSG Systems International insiders own 2.5% of the company, worth about US$36m. We’ve certainly seen higher levels of insider ownership elsewhere, but these holdings are enough to suggest alignment between insiders and the other shareholders.
So What Do The CSG Systems International Insider Transactions Indicate?
An insider sold CSG Systems International shares recently, but they didn’t buy any. And even if we look to the last year, we didn’t see any purchases. But it is good to see that CSG Systems International is growing earnings. Insider ownership isn’t particularly high, so this analysis makes us cautious about the company. We’re in no rush to buy! Therefore, you should should definitely take a look at this FREE report showing analyst forecasts for CSG Systems International.
Of course CSG Systems International may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of high quality companies.
We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.
If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.