Yahoo Finance Have Insiders Been Selling B2Gold Corp. (TSE:BTO) Shares?
It is not uncommon to see companies perform well in the years after insiders buy shares. On the other hand, we’d be remiss not to mention that insider sales have been known to precede tough periods for a business. So shareholders might well want to know whether insiders have been buying or selling shares in B2Gold Corp. (TSE:BTO).
What Is Insider Selling?
Most investors know that it is quite permissible for company leaders, such as directors of the board, to buy and sell stock on the market. However, rules govern insider transactions, and certain disclosures are required.
Insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing. But equally, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether. As Peter Lynch said, ‘insiders might sell their shares for any number of reasons, but they buy them for only one: they think the price will rise.’
View our latest analysis for B2Gold
The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At B2Gold
Eduard Bartz made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for CA$1.0m worth of shares at a price of CA$3.83 each. So it’s clear an insider wanted to take some cash off the table, even below the current price of CA$3.86. While their view may have changed since they sold, this isn’t a particularly bullish sign. We generally consider it a negative if insiders have been selling on market, especially if they did so below the current price. We note that the biggest single sale was 100% of Eduard Bartz’s holding.
Happily, we note that in the last year insiders paid CA$120k for 41.70k shares. But they sold 717.62k for CA$2.6m. In total, B2Gold insiders sold more than they bought over the last year. The average sell price was around US$3.58. It’s not particularly great to see insiders were selling shares at below recent prices. Since insiders sell for many reasons, we wouldn’t put too much weight on it. You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions 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!
If you like to buy stocks alongside management, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).
Insiders at B2Gold Have Sold Stock Recently
The last three months saw some B2Gold insider selling. Director Kevin Bullock sold US$36k worth of shares in that time. But US$7.5k was spent on buying, too, . While it’s not great to see insider selling, the net amount sold isn’t enough for us to want to read anything into it.
Does B2Gold Boast High Insider Ownership?
For a common shareholder, it is worth checking how many shares are held by company insiders. I reckon it’s a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. B2Gold insiders own about CA$85m worth of shares (which is 2.3% of the company). Most shareholders would be happy to see this sort of insider ownership, since it suggests that management incentives are well aligned with other shareholders.
So What Does This Data Suggest About B2Gold Insiders?
We note a that there’s been a little more insider selling than buying, recently. But the difference is small, and thus, not concerning. We’re a little cautious about the insider selling at B2Gold. But it’s good to see that insiders own shares in the company. If you are like me, you may want to think about whether this company will grow or shrink. Luckily, you can check this free report showing analyst forecasts for its future.
But note: B2Gold 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.
To help readers see past the short term volatility of the financial market, we aim to bring you a long-term focused research analysis purely driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis does not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements.
The author is an independent contributor and at the time of publication had no position in the stocks mentioned. For errors that warrant correction please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com.
