Usually, when one insider buys stock, it might not be a monumental event. But when multiple insiders are buying like they did in the case of TowneBank (NASDAQ:TOWN), that sends out a positive message to the company's shareholders.

While we would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing, logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares.

View our latest analysis for TowneBank

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At TowneBank

The insider, J. Davis, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$298k worth of shares at a price of US$29.90 each. So what is clear is that an insider saw fit to sell at around the current price of US$27.29. We generally don't like to see insider selling, but the lower the sale price, the more it concerns us. We note that this sale took place at around the current price, so it isn't a major concern, though it's hardly a good sign.

Over the last year, we can see that insiders have bought 44.13k shares worth US$1.2m. But they sold 38.33k shares for US$1.0m. In total, TowneBank insiders bought more than they sold over the last year. You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last 12 months, below. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!

TowneBank is not the only stock that insiders are buying. For those who like to find winning investments this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

Insiders At TowneBank Have Sold Stock Recently

There was substantially more insider selling, than buying, of TowneBank shares over the last three months. We note insiders cashed in US$608k worth of shares. Meanwhile insiders bought US$174k worth. Generally this level of net selling might be considered a bit bearish.

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. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. It's great to see that TowneBank insiders own 8.0% of the company, worth about US$163m. 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 TowneBank Tell Us?

The stark truth for TowneBank is that there has been more insider selling than insider buying in the last three months. On the other hand, the insider transactions over the last year are encouraging. On top of that, insiders own a significant portion of the company. So we're not too bothered by recent selling. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing TowneBank. Case in point: We've spotted 2 warning signs for TowneBank you should be aware of.