Nikola Corporation's $Nikola Corporation(NKLA)$ stock rose 29% last week, but insiders who sold US$367m worth of stock over the last year are probably in a more advantageous position. Holding on to stock would have meant their investment would be worth less now than it was at the time of sale. Thus selling at an average price of US$10.92, which is higher than the current price, may have been the best decision.
Although we don't think shareholders should simply follow insider transactions, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.
Nikola Insider Transactions Over The Last Year
The insider, Trevor Milton, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$131m worth of shares at a price of US$11.97 each. We generally don't like to see insider selling, but the lower the sale price, the more it concerns us. It's of some comfort that this sale was conducted at a price well above the current share price, which is US$8.85. So it is hard to draw any strong conclusion from it.
Nikola insiders didn't buy any shares over the last year. You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last 12 months, below. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!
Insiders at Nikola Have Sold Stock Recently
Over the last three months, we've seen significant insider selling at Nikola. In total, President of Energy & Commercial Pablo Koziner dumped US$500k worth of shares in that time, and we didn't record any purchases whatsoever. Overall this makes us a bit cautious, but it's not the be all and end all.
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. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. It's great to see that Nikola insiders own 16% of the company, worth about US$586m. 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 Nikola Tell Us?
An insider sold stock recently, but they haven't been buying. And there weren't any purchases to give us comfort, over the last year. The company boasts high insider ownership, but we're a little hesitant, given the history of share sales. So while it's helpful to know what insiders are doing in terms of buying or selling, it's also helpful to know the risks that a particular company is facing.
Source:SIMPLYWALLST
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