It is usually uneventful when a single insider buys stock. However, When quite a few insiders buy shares, as it happened in Marlowe plc's (LON:MRL) case, it's fantastic news for shareholders.

Although we don't think shareholders should simply follow insider transactions, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.

View our latest analysis for Marlowe

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Marlowe

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by CEO & Director Alex Dacre for UK£200k worth of shares, at about UK£10.00 per share. That means that an insider was happy to buy shares at above the current price of UK£8.96. While their view may have changed since the purchase was made, this does at least suggest they have had confidence in the company's future. In our view, the price an insider pays for shares is very important. Generally speaking, it catches our eye when insiders have purchased shares at above current prices, as it suggests they believed the shares were worth buying, even at a higher price.

In the last twelve months Marlowe insiders were buying shares, but not selling. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below! insider-trading-volume

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

Insider Ownership of Marlowe

Looking at the total insider shareholdings in a company can help to inform your view of whether they are well aligned with common shareholders. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. Marlowe insiders own about UK£159m worth of shares (which is 18% of the company). This kind of significant ownership by insiders does generally increase the chance that the company is run in the interest of all shareholders.



What Might The Insider Transactions At Marlowe Tell Us?

The fact that there have been no Marlowe insider transactions recently certainly doesn't bother us. On a brighter note, the transactions over the last year are encouraging. With high insider ownership and encouraging transactions, it seems like Marlowe insiders think the business has merit. While we like knowing what's going on with the insider's ownership and transactions, we make sure to also consider what risks are facing a stock before making any investment decision. For example - Marlowe has 1 warning sign we think you should be aware of.

Of course Marlowe may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this freecollection of high quality companies.

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, but not derivative transactions.

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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.