We wouldn't blame Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ) shareholders if they were a little worried about the fact that Tal Cohen, the President recently netted about US$1.1m selling shares at an average price of US$103. However, it's crucial to note that they remain very much invested in the stock and that sale only reduced their holding by 8.0%.
Nasdaq Insider Transactions Over The Last Year
The President, P. C. Griggs, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$1.7m worth of shares at a price of US$93.96 each. That means that even when the share price was below the current price of US$104, an insider wanted to cash in some shares. When an insider sells below the current price, it suggests that they considered that lower price to be fair. That makes us wonder what they think of the (higher) recent valuation. However, while insider selling is sometimes discouraging, it's only a weak signal. We note that the biggest single sale was only 7.6% of P. C. Griggs's holding.
Over the last year we saw more insider selling of Nasdaq shares, than buying. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!
Check out our latest analysis for Nasdaq
For those who like to find hidden gems this free list of small cap companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.
Does Nasdaq Boast High 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. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. Nasdaq insiders own 0.6% of the company, currently worth about US$372m based on the recent share price. 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 Nasdaq Insider Transactions Indicate?
Insiders sold Nasdaq shares recently, but they didn't buy any. And our longer term analysis of insider transactions didn't bring confidence, either. But since Nasdaq is profitable and growing, we're not too worried by this. It is good to see high insider ownership, but the insider selling leaves us cautious. So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. You'd be interested to know, that we found 2 warning signs for Nasdaq and we suggest you have a look.
But note: Nasdaq 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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