Some AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) shareholders may be a little concerned to see that the Independent Director, Henry Smith, recently sold a substantial US$519k worth of stock at a price of US$106 per share. That's a big disposal, and it decreased their holding size by 11%, which is notable but not too bad.
AXIS Capital Holdings Insider Transactions Over The Last Year
In fact, the recent sale by Henry Smith was the biggest sale of AXIS Capital Holdings shares made by an insider individual in the last twelve months, according to our records. That means that an insider was selling shares at below the current price (US$108). We generally consider it a negative if insiders have been selling, especially if they did so below the current price, because it implies that they considered a lower price to be reasonable. Please do note, however, that sellers may have a variety of reasons for selling, so we don't know for sure what they think of the stock price. It is worth noting that this sale was only 11% of Henry Smith's holding.
Henry Smith ditched 7.44k shares over the year. The average price per share was US$104. You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last 12 months, below. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!
View our latest analysis for AXIS Capital Holdings
If you like to buy stocks that insiders are buying, rather than selling, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: Most of them are flying under the radar).
Insider Ownership Of AXIS Capital Holdings
For a common shareholder, it is worth checking how many shares are held by company insiders. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. Insiders own 0.9% of AXIS Capital Holdings shares, worth about US$70m. This level of insider ownership is good but just short of being particularly stand-out. It certainly does suggest a reasonable degree of alignment.
What Might The Insider Transactions At AXIS Capital Holdings Tell Us?
An insider sold stock recently, but they haven't been buying. Looking to the last twelve months, our data doesn't show any insider buying. But since AXIS Capital Holdings is profitable and growing, we're not too worried by this. While insiders do own shares, they don't own a heap, and they have been selling. We'd practice some caution before buying! In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing AXIS Capital Holdings. Case in point: We've spotted 1 warning sign for AXIS Capital Holdings you should be aware of.
But note: AXIS Capital Holdings 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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