Over the past year, insiders sold US$1.1m worth of Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI) stock at an average price of US$53.58 per share allowing them to get the most out of their money. After the stock price dropped 4.7% last week, the company's market value declined by US$108m, but insiders were able to mitigate their losses.

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

Check out our latest analysis for Itron

Itron Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider sale was by the CEO, President & Director, Thomas Deitrich, for US$251k worth of shares, at about US$54.05 per share. While we don't usually like to see insider selling, it's more concerning if the sales take place at a lower price. It's of some comfort that this sale was conducted at a price well above the current share price, which is US$48.30. So it may not tell us anything about how insiders feel about the current share price.

Insiders in Itron didn't buy any shares in the last year. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

For those who like to find winning investments this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

Insiders At Itron Have Sold Stock Recently

The last three months saw some Itron insider selling. Insiders sold just US$36k worth of shares in that time. It's not great to see insider selling, nor the lack of recent buyers. But the selling simply isn't sufficiently substantial to be of much use as a signal.

Does Itron Boast High Insider Ownership?

For a common shareholder, it is worth checking how many shares are held by company insiders. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. It appears that Itron insiders own 0.9% of the company, worth about US$19m. This level of insider ownership is good but just short of being particularly stand-out. It certainly does suggest a reasonable degree of alignment.

So What Do The Itron Insider Transactions Indicate?

Our data shows a little more insider selling, but no insider buying, in the last three months. But given the selling was modest, we're not worried. We're a little cautious about the insider selling at Itron. But it's good to see that insiders own shares in the company. Of course, the future is what matters most. So if you are interested in Itron, you should check out this free report on analyst forecasts for the company.

Of course Itron may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection 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.