Some China Mengniu Dairy Company Limited (HKG:2319) shareholders may be a little concerned to see that the CEO & Executive Director, Minfang Lu, recently sold a substantial HK$13m worth of stock at a price of HK$26.33 per share. That's a big disposal, and it decreased their holding size by 15%, which is notable but not too bad.

See our latest analysis for China Mengniu Dairy

China Mengniu Dairy Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Notably, that recent sale by CEO & Executive Director Minfang Lu was not the only time they sold China Mengniu Dairy shares this year. They previously made an even bigger sale of -HK$25m worth of shares at a price of HK$36.60 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. The good news is that this large sale was at well above current price of HK$24.05. So it may not tell us anything about how insiders feel about the current share price.

Minfang Lu divested 1.62m shares over the last 12 months at an average price of CN¥32.79. 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!

I will like China Mengniu Dairy better if I see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out this free list of growing companies with considerable, recent, insider buying.

Insider Ownership Of China Mengniu Dairy

Looking at the total insider shareholdings in a company can help to inform your view of whether they are well aligned with common shareholders. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. It appears that China Mengniu Dairy insiders own 0.09% of the company, worth about HK$87m. This level of insider ownership is good but just short of being particularly stand-out. It certainly does suggest a reasonable degree of alignment.

What Might The Insider Transactions At China Mengniu Dairy Tell Us?

An insider sold stock recently, but they haven't been buying. And even if we look at the last year, we didn't see any purchases. Insiders own shares, but we're still pretty cautious, given the history of sales. So we'd only buy after careful consideration. 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. To assist with this, we've discovered 2 warning signs that you should run your eye over to get a better picture of China Mengniu Dairy.

Of course China Mengniu Dairy 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 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.