Manhattan Associates Insiders Sell US$6.0m Of Stock, Possibly Signalling Caution

The fact that multiple Manhattan Associates, Inc. (NASDAQ:MANH) insiders offloaded a considerable amount of shares over the past year could have raised some eyebrows amongst investors. Knowing whether insiders are buying is usually more helpful when evaluating insider transactions, as insider selling can have various explanations. However, shareholders should take a deeper look if several insiders are selling stock over a specific time period.

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.

View our latest analysis for Manhattan Associates

Manhattan Associates Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider sale was by the Executive Vice President of Professional Services - Americas, J. Gantt, for US$1.5m worth of shares, at about US$257 per share. We generally don't like to see insider selling, but the lower the sale price, the more it concerns us. The silver lining is that this sell-down took place above the latest price (US$173). So it may not tell us anything about how insiders feel about the current share price.

In the last year Manhattan Associates insiders didn't buy any company stock. 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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Insiders At Manhattan Associates Have Sold Stock Recently

Over the last three months, we've seen significant insider selling at Manhattan Associates. Specifically, Executive VP Dennis Story ditched US$476k worth of shares in that time, and we didn't record any purchases whatsoever. This may suggest that some insiders think that the shares are not cheap.

Insider Ownership Of Manhattan Associates

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by 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. Manhattan Associates insiders own about US$104m worth of shares (which is 1.0% of the company). Most shareholders would be happy to see this sort of insider ownership, since it suggests that management incentives are well aligned with other shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Manhattan Associates Tell Us?

An insider sold Manhattan Associates shares recently, but they didn't buy any. And even if we look at the last year, we didn't see any purchases. On the plus side, Manhattan Associates makes money, and is growing profits. It is good to see high insider ownership, but the insider selling leaves us cautious. Therefore, you should definitely take a look at this FREE report showing analyst forecasts for Manhattan Associates.

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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.