Over the past year, many Arch Resources, Inc. (NYSE:ARCH) insiders sold a significant stake in the company which may have piqued investors' interest. When evaluating insider transactions, knowing whether insiders are buying versus if they selling is usually more beneficial, as the latter can be open to many interpretations. However, if numerous insiders are selling, shareholders should investigate more.

While insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing, we do think it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing.

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Arch Resources

In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the Executive Chairman, John Eaves, sold US$16m worth of shares at a price of US$187 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 US$158. So it is hard to draw any strong conclusion from it.

In total, Arch Resources insiders sold more than they bought over the last year. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!

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Arch Resources Insiders Are Selling The Stock

We've seen more insider selling than insider buying at Arch Resources recently. We note insiders cashed in US$19m worth of shares. Meanwhile Director Pamela Butcher bought US$33k worth , as we said above . Generally this level of net selling might be considered a bit bearish.

Insider Ownership

I like to look at how many shares insiders own in a company, to help inform my view of how aligned they are with insiders. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. It appears that Arch Resources insiders own 3.3% of the company, worth about US$95m. While this is a strong but not outstanding level of insider ownership, it's enough to indicate some alignment between management and smaller shareholders.

So What Do The Arch Resources Insider Transactions Indicate?

The stark truth for Arch Resources is that there has been more insider selling than insider buying in the last three months. Zooming out, the longer term picture doesn't give us much comfort. While insiders do own shares, they don't own a heap, and they have been selling. We're in no rush to buy! 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. When we did our research, we found 4 warning signs for Arch Resources (1 is concerning!) that we believe deserve your full attention.

But note: Arch Resources may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with high ROE and low debt.

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.