Insider Trading 25 July 2014: Facebook Selling Again

by Asif Suria

Insider buying increased significantly last week with insiders buying $88.99 million of stock compared to $8.35 million in the week prior. Most of this increase was driven by IPO related purchases. With earnings season in full swing other insider purchases remain muted. Selling also increased with insiders selling $549.37 million of stock last week compared to $492.89 million in the week prior.

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 6.17.In other words, insiders sold more than 6 times as much stock as they purchased.

The Sell/Buy ratio this week compares favorably with the prior week, when the ratio stood at 59.03 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.

Insider Sell Buy Ratio July 25, 2014

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. Colfax Corporation (CFX): $68.67

Director A. Clayton Perfall acquired 7,447 shares of this industrial manufacturing and engineering company, paying $67.33 per share for a total amount of $501,397. These shares were purchased indirectly through a trust.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Colfax Corporation here.

2. Simmons First National Corporation (SFNC): $39.11

Shares of this regional bank were acquired by 2 insiders:

• Chairman & CEO George Makris Jr. acquired 5,000 shares, paying $38.88 per share for a total amount of $194,400. Mr. Makris increased his stake by 7.20% to 74,433 shares with this purchase.
• Director Steven A. Cosse acquired 4,000 shares, paying $38.94 per share for a total amount of $155,749. Mr. Cosse increased his stake by 44.32% to 13,025 shares with this purchase.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Simmons First National Corporation here.

3. Opko Health, Inc. (OPK): $9

CEO & Chairman Phillip Frost M.D. acquired 40,000 shares of this medical devices and drug development company, paying $8.72 per share for a total amount of $348,881. These shares were purchased indirectly by Frost Gamma Investments Trust.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Opko Health, Inc. here.

4. KeyCorp. (KEY): $13.86

Shares of this regional bank were acquired by 4 insiders:

• Director Kristen L. Manos acquired 9,000 shares, paying $13.58 per share for a total amount of $122,220. Ms. Manos increased her stake by 25.14% to 44,795 shares with this purchase.
• Director Demos Parneros acquired 4,000 shares, paying $13.63 per share for a total amount of $54,520.
• Director William G. Gisel Jr. acquired 1,500 shares, paying $13.66 per share for a total amount of $20,490. Mr. Gisel increased his stake by 44.12% to 4,900 shares with this purchase.
• Director Ruth Ann Gillis acquired 1,000 shares, paying $13.65 per share for a total amount of $13,650. Ms. Gillis increased her stake by 28.57% to 4,500 shares with this purchase.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for KeyCorp. here.

5. The Travelers Companies, Inc. (TRV): $92.1

Director Philip T. Ruegger acquired 2,200 shares of this insurance company, paying $92.09 per share for a total amount of $202,598. Mr. Ruegger increased his stake by 43.88% to 7,214 shares with this purchase.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for The Travelers Companies, Inc. here.

You can view the full list of purchases from this Insider Buying page.

Notable Insider Sales:

1. Facebook, Inc. (FB): $75.19

Shares of Facebook were sold by 4 insiders:

• Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg sold 283,334 shares for $69.16, generating $19.59 million from the sale.
• Chief Product Officer Christopher K. Cox sold 42,521 shares for $68.84, generating $2.93 million from the sale.
• VP Marketing & Business Partnerships David B. Fischer sold 36,000 shares for $72.85, generating $2.62 million from the sale.
• Chief Accounting Officer Jas Athwal sold 10,000 shares for $75.94, generating $759,400 from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Facebook, Inc. here.

2. ManpowerGroup Inc. (MAN): $81.46

Shares of this staffing company were sold by 2 insiders:

• Executive Chairman Jeffrey A. Joerres sold 160,610 shares for $82.21, generating $13.2 million from the sale.
• EVP, CFO Michael Van Handel sold 113,546 shares for $81.83, generating $9.29 million from the sale. 64,103 of 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 ManpowerGroup Inc. here.

3. ServiceNow, Inc. (NOW): $59.73

Shares of this software-as-a-service provider were sold by 2 insiders:

• Chief Product Officer Frederic B. Luddy sold 151,400 shares for $58.59, generating $8.87 million from the sale. 50,000 of these shares were sold indirectly by Frederic B. Luddy CRT, LLC and 1,400 shares were sold indirectly by Mr. Luddy’s spouse.
• Chief Financial Officer Michael Scarpelli sold 10,000 shares for $60.04, generating $600,400 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 ServiceNow, Inc. here.

4. REX American Resources Corporation (REX): $86.91

Shares of this ethanol producer and real estate company were sold by 3 insiders:

• COB; CEO Stuart A. Rose sold 57,000 shares for $88.51, generating $5.04 million from the sale.
• Director Lawrence Tomchin sold 10,528 shares for $87.89, generating $925,279 from the sale. 82 of these shares were sold indirectly by Mr. Tomchin’s wife.
• CFO; VP-Finance; Treasurer Douglas Bruggeman sold 2,000 shares for $89.76, generating $179,518 from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for REX American Resources Corporation here.

5. Crestwood Midstream Partners LP (CMLP): $23.35

Director John J. Sherman sold 180,000 shares of this natural gas company for $23.32, generating $4.19 million from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly through a trust.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Crestwood Midstream Partners LP here.

You can view the full list of sales from this Insider Sales page.

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