by Asif Suria
Insider buying increased with insiders purchasing $90.2 million of their stock last week compared to $71.05 million in the week prior. Selling also increased with insiders selling $1.05 billion of stock last week compared to $980.15 million in the week prior. Since we are at the start of a new quarter, insider activity is likely to be muted over the next couple of weeks.
Sell/Buy Ratio: The insider Sell/Buy ratio is calculated by dividing the total insider sales in a given week by total insider purchases that week. The adjusted ratio for last week dropped to 11.69. In other words, insiders sold more than 11 times as much stock as they purchased. The Sell/Buy ratio this week compares favorably with the prior week, when the ratio stood at 13.8.
We are calculating an adjusted ratio by removing transactions by funds and companies and trying as best as possible only to retain information about insiders and 10% owners who are not funds or companies.
Note: As mentioned in the first post in this series, certain industries have their preferred metrics such as same store sales for retailers, funds from operations (FFO) for REITs and revenue per available room (RevPAR) for hotels that provide a better basis for comparison than simple valuation metrics. However metrics like Price/Earnings, Price/Sales and Enterprise Value/EBITDA included below should provide a good starting point for analyzing the majority of stocks.
Notable Insider Buys:
1. AGCO Corporation (AGCO): $50.7
Director Mallika Srinivasan acquired 1,088,695 shares of this farm & construction machinery company, paying $50.94 per share for a total amount of $55.46 million. These shares were purchased indirectly by Tractors and Farm Equipment Limited (TAFE).
These purchases follow several purchases by Ms. Srinivasan last September through December where she picked up shares indirectly through TAFE at prices ranging from $43.16 to $46. AGCO also happens to be a large customer of TAFE.
Trading at an EV/EBITDA of 5.71 and below 9 times expected 2014 earnings, the stock appears to be attractively valued.
You can view the list of recent insider transactions for AGCO Corporation here.
P/E: 9.57 | Forward P/E: 8.68 | Industry P/E: 33.67 |
P/S: 0.49 | Price/Book: 1.42 | EV/EBITDA: 5.71 |
Market Cap: $4.92B | Avg. Daily Volume: 1,125,090 | 52 Week Range: $38.09 – $55.15 |
2. Opko Health, Inc. (OPK): $7.17
Shares of this medical devices and drug development company were acquired by 2 insiders:
- CEO & Chairman Phillip Frost M.D. acquired 354,000 shares, paying $7.21 per share for a total amount of $2.55 million. These shares were purchased indirectly by Frost Gamma Investments Trust.
- Vice Chairman & CTO Jane Hsiao acquired 5,000 shares, paying $6.99 per share for a total amount of $34,950. Ms. Hsiao increased her stake by 0.03% to 17,905,231 shares with this purchase.
You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Opko Health, Inc. here.
P/E: N/A | Forward P/E: N/A | Industry P/E: 26.25 |
P/S: 50.25 | Price/Book: 12.31 | EV/EBITDA: -89.62 |
Market Cap: $2.32B | Avg. Daily Volume: 2,591,840 | 52 Week Range: $4 – $7.83 |
3. Macquarie Infrastructure Company LLC (MIC): $53.13
Chief Executive Officer James Hooke acquired 13,327 shares of this holding company for infrastructure businesses, paying $51.13 per share for a total amount of $681,410. Mr. Hooke increased his stake by 38.08% to 48,327 shares with this purchase.
You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Macquarie Infrastructure Company LLC here.
P/E: 185.77 | Forward P/E: 51.58 | Industry P/E: N/A |
P/S: 2.41 | Price/Book: 3.8 | EV/EBITDA: 34.87 |
Market Cap: $2.52B | Avg. Daily Volume: 244,115 | 52 Week Range: $31.9 – $54.93 |
4. Windstream Corporation (WIN): $8.33
Shares of this telecom service provider were acquired by 2 insiders:
- Director Samuel E. Beall III acquired 30,000 shares, paying $8.01 per share for a total amount of $240,297. Mr. Beall increased his stake by 44.36% to 97,626 shares with this purchase.
- Director Carol B. Armitage acquired 1,000 shares, paying $7.98 per share for a total amount of $7,980. Ms. Armitage increased her stake by 1.98% to 51,463 shares with this purchase.
You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Windstream Corporation here.
P/E: 29.64 | Forward P/E: 16.33 | Industry P/E: 28.05 |
P/S: 0.79 | Price/Book: 4.38 | EV/EBITDA: 6.08 |
Market Cap: $4.92B | Avg. Daily Volume: 8,596,360 | 52 Week Range: $7.86 – $11.46 |
5. Apache Corp. (APA): $74.2
Director George D. Lawrence acquired 3,000 shares of this oil and gas company, paying $76.00 per share for a total amount of $228,000. These shares were purchased indirectly by Mr. Lawrence’s spouse’s IRA.
You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Apache Corp. here.
P/E: 15.08 | Forward P/E: 7.3 | Industry P/E: 16.51 |
P/S: 1.75 | Price/Book: 0.98 | EV/EBITDA: 3.34 |
Market Cap: $29.07B | Avg. Daily Volume: 3,400,490 | 52 Week Range: $72.2 – $98.2 |
You can view the full list of purchases from this Insider Buying page.
Notable Insider Sales:
1. Kohl’s Corp. (KSS): $48.16
Shares of this department stores chain were sold by 3 insiders:
- Director John F. Herma sold 200,000 shares for $48.00, generating $9.6 million from the sale.
- Chief Administrative Officer John M. Worthington sold 13,500 shares for $47.99, generating $647,865 from the sale.
- Sr. Executive Vice President Peggy Eskenasi sold 5,052 shares for $46.68, generating $235,807 from the sale.
You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Kohl’s Corp. here.
P/E: 11.55 | Forward P/E: 9.99 | Industry P/E: 18.47 |
P/S: 0.55 | Price/Book: 1.77 | EV/EBITDA: 5.4 |
Market Cap: $10.69B | Avg. Daily Volume: 2,824,420 | 52 Week Range: $41.35 – $55.25 |
2. Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (ALXN): $99.2
CEO Leonard Bell sold 43,300 shares of this biotech company for $95.95, generating $4.2 million from the sale.
You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. here.
P/E: 77.5 | Forward P/E: 29.79 | Industry P/E: 18.73 |
P/S: 17.02 | Price/Book: 9.77 | EV/EBITDA: 44.31 |
Market Cap: $19.36B | Avg. Daily Volume: 1,900,540 | 52 Week Range: $81.28 – $119.54 |
3. Boston Beer Co. Inc. (SAM): $154.24
Shares of this beverage company were sold by 2 insiders:
- Chairman James C. Koch sold 24,000 shares for $158.68, generating $3.8 million from the sale.
- VP – Legal and Secretary Kathleen H. Wade sold 700 shares for $156.00, generating $109,200 from the sale. These shares were sold as a result of exercising options immediately prior to the sale.
You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Boston Beer Co. Inc. here.
P/E: 35.15 | Forward P/E: 27.11 | Industry P/E: 22.27 |
P/S: 3.42 | Price/Book: 8.09 | EV/EBITDA: 16.46 |
Market Cap: $1.96B | Avg. Daily Volume: 84,760 | 52 Week Range: $97.47 – $164.52 |
4. Hertz Global Holdings, Inc. (HTZ): $22.56
Shares of this car rental company were sold by 2 insiders:
- Senior V.P., Global Sales Robert J. Stuart sold 90,218 shares for $24.00, generating $2.16 million from the sale.
- Senior Vice President, CIO Joseph F. Eckroth Jr. sold 70,000 shares for $23.69, generating $1.66 million from the sale.
You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Hertz Global Holdings, Inc. here.
P/E: 41.78 | Forward P/E: 9.6 | Industry P/E: 1 |
P/S: 1.05 | Price/Book: 3.77 | EV/EBITDA: 16.87 |
Market Cap: $9.51B | Avg. Daily Volume: 7,181,150 | 52 Week Range: $10.22 – $24.02 |
5. Domino’s Pizza, Inc. (DPZ): $50.55
President and CEO Patrick J. Doyle sold 58,238 shares of this pizza chain for $51.50, generating $2.99 million from the sale.
You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Domino’s Pizza, Inc. here.
P/E: 26.47 | Forward P/E: 19.08 | Industry P/E: 39.87 |
P/S: 1.72 | Price/Book: N/A | EV/EBITDA: 14.36 |
Market Cap: $2.85B | Avg. Daily Volume: 517,911 | 52 Week Range: $28.17 – $51.9 |
You can view the full list of sales from this Insider Sales page.