Insider Trading 24 July 2015: Most Insider Buying by Three Noted Investors

by Asif Suria

Insider buying increased significantly last week with insiders buying $182.33 million of stock compared to $6.83 million in the week prior. Selling on the other hand decreased with insiders selling $472.75 million of stock last week compared to $522.48 million in the week prior.

Most of the insider buying was driven by three noted investors adding to their existing positions.

David Einhorn of Greenlight Capital increased his stake in natural gas and coal company Consol Energy (CNX) to the tune of $113.69 million, Mark Rachesky picked up 800,000 shares of diesel truck engine manufacturer Navistar International (NAV) and Bruce Berkowitz of Fairholme Capital once again increased his position in Sears Holdings (SHLD). Mr. Berkowitz sold 251,400 shares from a managed client account based on instructions from the client and purchased 250,000 shares for his fund. Sears Holdings continues its roller coaster ride with the stock down nearly 44% over the last three months, erasing all the gains from a big rally earlier this year and then some.

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 went up to 2.59. In other words, insiders sold almost 3 times as much stock as they purchased. The Sell/Buy ratio this week compares favorably with the prior week, when the ratio stood at 76.51. 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, 2015

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. Eagle Bancorp, Inc. (EGBN): $45.47

President & CEO Ronald D. Paul acquired 177,536 shares of this regional bank, paying $43.98 per share for a total amount of $7.81 million. Mr. Paul increased his stake by 1.39% to 12,954,994 shares with this purchase.

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

2. Kinder Morgan, Inc. (KMI): $34.85

Executive Chairman Richard D. Kinder acquired 100,000 shares of this oil & gas pipelines company, paying $34.97 per share for a total amount of $3.49 million. Mr. Kinder increased his stake by 0.04% to 234,112,353 shares with this purchase.

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

3. Domino’s Pizza, Inc. (DPZ): $110.96

Director Andrew Balson acquired 22,180 shares of this pizza chain, paying $112.33 per share for a total amount of $2.49 million. These shares were purchased indirectly through a trust.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Domino’s Pizza, Inc. here.

4. Regulus Therapeutics Inc. (RGLS): $9.17

Director William H. Rastetter acquired 100,000 shares of this biotech company, paying $10.17 per share for a total amount of $1.02 million. These shares were purchased indirectly through a trust.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Regulus Therapeutics Inc. here.

5. FMC Technologies, Inc. (FTI): $32.84

President & COO Doug Pferdehirt acquired 30,304 shares of this oil services company, paying $33.00 per share for a total amount of $1 million. These shares were purchased indirectly through a trust.

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

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

Notable Insider Sales:

1. Masimo Corporation (MASI): $41.98

Shares of this medical technology company were sold by 3 insiders:

• CEO and Chairman of the Board Joe E. Kiani sold 300,000 shares for $40.55, generating $12.17 million from the sale.
• Pres, WW OEM Business & Blood Management Rick Fishel sold 35,084 shares for $41.85, generating $1.47 million from the sale. 25,084 of these shares were sold as a result of exercising options immediately prior to the sale.
• Director Steven Barker sold 20,000 shares for $40.00, generating $800,000 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 Masimo Corporation here.

2. Twitter, Inc. (TWTR): $35.42

Director Evan Clark Williams sold 372,000 shares of Twitter for $36.11, generating $13.43 million from the sale. 349,680 of these shares were sold indirectly through various trusts.

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

Voluntary Disclosure: I hold a long position in Twitter.

3. Honeywell International Inc. (HON): $102.77

Vice Chairman Roger Fradin sold 70,926 shares of this industrial technology and manufacturing company for $105.00, generating $7.45 million from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Honeywell International Inc. here.

4. Home Bancshares, Inc. (HOMB): $38.97

Shares of this bank holding company were sold by 2 insiders:

• Chairman John W. Allison sold 150,000 shares for $39.50, generating $5.93 million from the sale.
• Director James G. Hinkle sold 30,000 shares for $39.67, generating $1.19 million from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly through a trust.

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

5. Douglas Emmett Inc (DEI): $29.07

Chairman of the Board Dan A. Emmett sold 140,000 shares of this apartment REIT for $29.01, generating $4.06 million from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly through a trust.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Douglas Emmett Inc here.

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

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