Those following along with Sagicor Financial Company Ltd. (TSE:SFC) will no doubt be intrigued by the recent purchase of shares by insider Gilbert Palter, who spent a stonking CA$1.3m on stock at an average price of CA$5.60. That purchase boosted their holding by 100%, which makes us wonder if the move was inspired by quietly confident deeply-felt optimism.

Check out our latest analysis for Sagicor Financial

Sagicor Financial Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Notably, that recent purchase by Gilbert Palter is the biggest insider purchase of Sagicor Financial shares that we’ve seen in the last year. That means that an insider was happy to buy shares at above the current price of CA$5.50. It’s very possible they regret the purchase, but it’s more likely they are bullish about the company. To us, it’s very important to consider the price insiders pay for shares. As a general rule, we feel more positive about a stock if insiders have bought shares at above current prices, because that suggests they viewed the stock as good value, even at a higher price. We note that Gilbert Palter was also the biggest seller.

In the last twelve months insiders purchased 316.59k shares for CA$1.8m. But insiders sold 39.00k shares worth CA$225k. In the last twelve months there was more buying than selling by Sagicor Financial insiders. 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!

Sagicor Financial 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.

Insider Ownership

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. It appears that Sagicor Financial insiders own 11% of the company, worth about CA$85m. 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 Sagicor Financial Insider Transactions Indicate?

It is good to see recent purchasing. And an analysis of the transactions over the last year also gives us confidence. When combined with notable insider ownership, these factors suggest Sagicor Financial insiders are well aligned, and that they may think the share price is too low. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it’s beneficial to identify the risks facing Sagicor Financial. For instance, we’ve identified 3 warning signs for Sagicor Financial (1 is concerning) you should be aware of.

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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.