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Have Insiders Been Buying BELLUS Health Inc. (TSE:BLU) Shares This Year?

We often see insiders buying up shares in companies that perform well over the long term. Unfortunately, there are also plenty of examples of share prices declining precipitously after insiders have sold shares. So shareholders might well want to know whether insiders have been buying or selling shares in BELLUS Health Inc. (TSE:BLU).

What Is Insider Selling?

It is perfectly legal for company insiders, including board members, to buy and sell stock in a company. However, most countries require that the company discloses such transactions to the market.

We don't think shareholders should simply follow insider transactions. But logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares. For example, a Harvard University study found that 'insider purchases earn abnormal returns of more than 6% per year.

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Check out our latest analysis for BELLUS Health

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At BELLUS Health

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by Chairman Francesco Bellini for CA$1.3m worth of shares, at about CA$9.34 per share. We do like to see buying, but this purchase was made at well below the current price of CA$14.54. Because the shares were purchased at a lower price, this particular buy doesn't tell us much about how insiders feel about the current share price.

While BELLUS Health insiders bought shares last year, they didn't sell. You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by individuals) over the last 12 months, below. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

TSX:BLU Recent Insider Trading, February 21st 2020
TSX:BLU Recent Insider Trading, February 21st 2020

There are plenty of other companies that have insiders buying up shares. You probably do not want to miss this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying.

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. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. BELLUS Health insiders own about CA$16m worth of shares. That equates to 2.2% 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 BELLUS Health Tell Us?

The fact that there have been no BELLUS Health 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 BELLUS Health insiders are doubting the company, and they do own shares. Of course, the future is what matters most. So if you are interested in BELLUS Health, you should check out this free report on analyst forecasts for the company.

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.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.

We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.