Some Crown Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CCK) shareholders may be a little concerned to see that the Executive VP & Chief Administrative Officer, Gerard Gifford, recently sold a substantial US$846k worth of stock at a price of US$103 per share. However, that sale only accounted for 6.0% of their holding, so arguably it doesn't say much about their conviction.
Crown Holdings Insider Transactions Over The Last Year
In fact, the recent sale by Executive VP & Chief Administrative Officer Gerard Gifford was not their only sale of Crown Holdings shares this year. They previously made an even bigger sale of -US$959k worth of shares at a price of US$95.89 per share. That means that an insider was selling shares at slightly below the current price (US$101). As a general rule we consider it to be discouraging when insiders are selling below the current price, because it suggests they were happy with a lower valuation. 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 7.7% of Gerard Gifford's holding.
Crown Holdings insiders didn't buy any shares over the last year. You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by companies and individuals) 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!
Check out our latest analysis for Crown Holdings
For those who like to find hidden gems this free list of small cap companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.
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. It's great to see that Crown Holdings insiders own 1.0% of the company, worth about US$114m. 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 Crown Holdings Insiders?
Insiders haven't bought Crown Holdings stock in the last three months, but there was some selling. Looking to the last twelve months, our data doesn't show any insider buying. On the plus side, Crown Holdings makes money, and is growing profits. The company boasts high insider ownership, but we're a little hesitant, given the history of share sales. So while it's helpful to know what insiders are doing in terms of buying or selling, it's also helpful to know the risks that a particular company is facing. In terms of investment risks, we've identified 3 warning signs with Crown Holdings and understanding them should be part of your investment process.
But note: Crown 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 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.