Insider Stock Buying Reaches US$107.6m On Gold Fields

Multiple insiders secured a larger position in Gold Fields Limited (JSE:GFI) shares over the last 12 months. This is reassuring as this suggests that insiders have increased optimism about the company's prospects.

Although we don't think shareholders should simply follow insider transactions, we do think it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing.

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The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Gold Fields

In the last twelve months, the biggest single purchase by an insider was when CEO & Executive Director Michael Fraser bought R28m worth of shares at a price of R346 per share. Even though the purchase was made at a significantly lower price than the recent price (R691), 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.

In the last twelve months Gold Fields insiders were buying shares, but not selling. 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!

Check out our latest analysis for Gold Fields

There are always plenty of stocks that insiders are buying. If investing in lesser known companies is your style, you could take a look at this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).

Insider Ownership

Looking at the total insider shareholdings in a company can help to inform your view of whether they are well aligned with common shareholders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. Insiders own 0.09% of Gold Fields shares, worth about R587m. 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 Gold Fields Tell Us?

It doesn't really mean much that no insider has traded Gold Fields shares in the last quarter. On a brighter note, the transactions over the last year are encouraging. With high insider ownership and encouraging transactions, it seems like Gold Fields insiders think the business has merit. 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.

But note: Gold Fields may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with high ROE and low debt.

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.