Trade Alert: The Executive Vice President of Strategy Of Gold Fields Limited (JSE:GFI), Brett Mattison, Has Sold Some Shares Recently

Some Gold Fields Limited (JSE:GFI) shareholders may be a little concerned to see that the Executive Vice President of Strategy, Brett Mattison, recently sold a substantial R38m worth of stock at a price of R128 per share. That diminished their holding by a very significant 100%, which arguably implies a strong desire to reallocate capital.

Check out our latest analysis for Gold Fields

Gold Fields Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

In fact, the recent sale by Brett Mattison was the biggest sale of Gold Fields shares made by an insider individual in the last twelve months, according to our records. So we know that an insider sold shares at around the present share price of R126. While we don't usually like to see insider selling, it's more concerning if the sales take place 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.

Happily, we note that in the last year insiders paid R12m for 114.23k shares. But they sold 745.76k shares for R99m. Over the last year we saw more insider selling of Gold Fields shares, than buying. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and 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!

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Insider Ownership

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. Gold Fields insiders own about R203m worth of shares. That equates to 0.2% of the company. This level of insider ownership is good but just short of being particularly stand-out. It certainly does suggest a reasonable degree of alignment.

So What Do The Gold Fields Insider Transactions Indicate?

Insiders haven't bought Gold Fields stock in the last three months, but there was some selling. Zooming out, the longer term picture doesn't give us much comfort. But it is good to see that Gold Fields is growing earnings. While insiders do own a lot of shares in the company (which is good), our analysis of their transactions doesn't make us feel confident about the company. So while it's helpful to know what insiders are doing in terms of buying or selling, it's also helpful to know the risks that a particular company is facing. At Simply Wall St, we found 2 warning signs for Gold Fields that deserve your attention before buying any shares.

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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, but not derivative transactions.

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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. 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.
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