Yahoo Finance Have Insiders Been Selling Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KNX) Shares This Year?
We often see insiders buying up shares in companies that perform well over the long term. 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 Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KNX).
What Is Insider Selling?
It's quite normal to see company insiders, such as board members, trading in company stock, from time to time. However, most countries require that the company discloses such transactions to the market.
We don't think shareholders should simply follow insider transactions. But it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing. 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.'
See our latest analysis for Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings
Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Insider Transactions Over The Last Year
In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the Executive Vice Chairman, Gary Knight, sold US$6.0m worth of shares at a price of US$33.21 per share. That means that even when the share price was below the current price of US$37.41, an insider wanted to cash in some shares. We generally consider it a negative if insiders have been selling, especially if they did so below the current price, because it implies that they considered a lower price to be reasonable. Please do note, however, that sellers may have a variety of reasons for selling, so we don't know for sure what they think of the stock price. We note that the biggest single sale was only 3.7% of Gary Knight's holding.
Over the last year, we can see that insiders have bought 4661 shares worth US$129k. On the other hand they divested 445k shares, for US$15m. All up, insiders sold more shares in Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings than they bought, over the last year. The chart below shows insider transactions (by individuals) over the last year. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!
I will like Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings better if I see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out this free list of growing companies with considerable, recent, insider buying.
Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Insiders Are Selling The Stock
The last three months saw significant insider selling at Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings. In total, Chief Operating Officer of Swift Kevin Quast sold US$157k worth of shares in that time, and we didn't record any purchases whatsoever. Overall this makes us a bit cautious, but it's not the be all and end all.
Insider Ownership
Looking at the total insider shareholdings in a company can help to inform your view of whether they are well aligned with common shareholders. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings insiders own about US$304m worth of shares (which is 4.8% of the company). I like to see this level of insider ownership, because it increases the chances that management are thinking about the best interests of shareholders.
What Might The Insider Transactions At Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Tell Us?
An insider sold Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings shares recently, but they didn't buy any. And our longer term analysis of insider transactions didn't bring confidence, either. While insiders do own a lot of shares in the company (which is good), our analysis of their transactions doesn't make us feel confident about 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: Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings 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.
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.
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.
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. Thank you for reading.
