Last week, Hao Tian International Construction Investment Group Limited's (HKG:1341) stock jumped 12%, but insiders who sold HK$6.7m worth of stock in over the past year are likely to be in a better position.  Selling at an average price of HK$0.28, which is higher than the current price might have been the right call as holding on to stock would have meant their investment would be worth less now than it was at the time of sale.    

While we would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing,  we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.

Check out our latest analysis for Hao Tian International Construction Investment Group

Hao Tian International Construction Investment Group Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider sale was by the insider, Lin Yuan, for HK$6.7m worth of shares, at about HK$0.28 per share.    That means that even when the share price was below the current price of HK$1.40, an insider wanted to cash in some shares.  We generally consider it a negative if insiders have been selling, especially if they did so below the current price, because it implies that they considered a lower price to be reasonable.  However, while insider selling is sometimes discouraging, it's only a weak signal.   This single sale was just 2.6% of Lin Yuan's stake.      Lin Yuan was the only individual insider to sell over the last year.  

You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last 12 months, below.  By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!

SEHK:1341 Insider Trading Volume December 1st 2023

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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.  We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership.   Hao Tian International Construction Investment Group insiders own 22% of the company, currently worth about HK$2.4b based on the recent share price.  I like to see this level of insider ownership, because it increases the chances that management are thinking about the best interests of shareholders.  

So What Do The Hao Tian International Construction Investment Group Insider Transactions Indicate?

There haven't been any insider transactions in the last three months -- that doesn't mean much.      It's heartening that insiders own plenty of stock, but we'd like to see more insider buying, since the last year of Hao Tian International Construction Investment Group insider transactions don't fill us with confidence.       In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Hao Tian International Construction Investment Group.    While conducting our analysis, we found that Hao Tian International Construction Investment Group has 2 warning signs and it would be unwise to ignore them.  

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of interesting 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 of direct interests only, but not derivative transactions or indirect interests.

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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.