Yahoo Finance A number of insiders bought Great Western Exploration Limited (ASX:GTE) stock last year, which is great news for shareholders
Generally, when a single insider buys stock, it is usually not a big deal. However, when several insiders are buying, like in the case of Great Western Exploration Limited (ASX:GTE), it sends a favourable message to the company's shareholders.
While we would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing, we do think it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing.
See our latest analysis for Great Western Exploration
Great Western Exploration Insider Transactions Over The Last Year
Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by Non-Executive Director Grey Egerton-Warburton for AU$338k worth of shares, at about AU$0.08 per share. That means that even when the share price was higher than AU$0.06 (the recent price), an insider wanted to purchase shares. Their view may have changed since then, but at least it shows they felt optimistic at the time. In our view, the price an insider pays for shares is very important. Generally speaking, it catches our eye when insiders have purchased shares at above current prices, as it suggests they believed the shares were worth buying, even at a higher price.
Great Western Exploration insiders may have bought shares in the last year, but they didn't sell any. You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last 12 months, below. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!
Great Western Exploration is not the only stock that insiders are buying. For those who like to find winning investments this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.
Insider Ownership Of Great Western Exploration
For a common shareholder, it is worth checking how many shares are held by company 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. Great Western Exploration insiders own about AU$3.6m worth of shares. That equates to 33% of the company. We've certainly seen higher levels of insider ownership elsewhere, but these holdings are enough to suggest alignment between insiders and the other shareholders.
What Might The Insider Transactions At Great Western Exploration Tell Us?
The fact that there have been no Great Western Exploration insider transactions recently certainly doesn't bother us. On a brighter note, the transactions over the last year are encouraging. Overall we don't see anything to make us think Great Western Exploration insiders are doubting the company, and they do own shares. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Great Western Exploration. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 4 warning signs for Great Western Exploration (of which 3 are a bit concerning!) you should know about.
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, but not derivative transactions.
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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.
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