Michael Gerdin Buys Handful Of Shares In Heartland Express

Heartland Express, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLD) shareholders (or potential shareholders) will be happy to see that the Chairman of the Board, Michael Gerdin, recently bought a whopping US$584k worth of stock, at a price of US$11.67. There's no denying a buy of that magnitude suggests conviction in a brighter future, although we do note that proportionally it only increased their holding by 0.3%.

Check out our latest analysis for Heartland Express

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Heartland Express

In fact, the recent purchase by Chairman of the Board Michael Gerdin was not their only acquisition of Heartland Express shares this year. They previously made an even bigger purchase of US$2.8m worth of shares at a price of US$10.44 per share. Even though the purchase was made at a significantly lower price than the recent price (US$12.11), we still think insider buying is a positive. Because it occurred at a lower valuation, it doesn't tell us much about whether insiders might find today's price attractive.

While Heartland Express insiders bought shares during the last year, they didn't sell. The average buy price was around US$12.02. It's great to see insiders putting their own cash into the company's stock, albeit at below the recent share price. 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!

Heartland Express 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 Heartland Express 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. Heartland Express insiders own about US$212m worth of shares (which is 22% of the company). This kind of significant ownership by insiders does generally increase the chance that the company is run in the interest of all shareholders.

So What Do The Heartland Express Insider Transactions Indicate?

The recent insider purchase is heartening. And the longer term insider transactions also give us confidence. But we don't feel the same about the fact the company is making losses. When combined with notable insider ownership, these factors suggest Heartland Express insiders are well aligned, and quite possibly think the share price is too low. That's what I like to see! If you are like me, you may want to think about whether this company will grow or shrink. Luckily, you can check this free report showing analyst forecasts for its future.

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 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.