Yahoo Finance AutoZone Insiders Sold US$2.6m Of Shares Suggesting Hesitancy
In the last year, many AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) insiders sold a substantial stake in the company which may have sparked shareholders' attention. When evaluating insider transactions, knowing whether insiders are buying versus if they selling is usually more beneficial, as the latter can be open to many interpretations. However, if numerous insiders are selling, shareholders should investigate more.
While insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing, logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares.
Check out our latest analysis for AutoZone
AutoZone Insider Transactions Over The Last Year
Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by Senior VP & Chief Information Officer of Customer Satisfaction Michelle Borninkhof for US$1.1m worth of shares, at about US$2,411 per share. Even though the purchase was made at a significantly lower price than the recent price (US$2,952), we still think insider buying is a positive. While it does suggest insiders consider the stock undervalued at lower prices, this transaction doesn't tell us much about what they think of current prices.
Over the last year we saw more insider selling of AutoZone shares, than buying. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!
I will like AutoZone better if I see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out this free list of growing companies with considerable, recent, insider buying.
Have AutoZone Insiders Traded Recently?
In the last three months, Executive Chairman William Rhodes sold US$2.8k worth of shares. That's not much at all. Ultimately the overall selling isn't enough to tell us much.
Does AutoZone Boast High Insider Ownership?
Another way to test the alignment between the leaders of a company and other shareholders is to look at how many shares they own. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. AutoZone insiders own 0.2% of the company, currently worth about US$103m 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 Does This Data Suggest About AutoZone Insiders?
Our data shows a little more insider selling, but no insider buying, in the last three months. However, the sales are not big enough to concern us at all. It's heartening that insiders own plenty of stock, but we'd like to see more insider buying, since the last year of AutoZone insider transactions don't fill us with confidence. So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. To help with this, we've discovered 2 warning signs (1 is a bit concerning!) that you ought to be aware of before buying any shares in AutoZone.
If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity 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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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.
