Over the past year, many CoStar Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSGP) insiders sold a significant stake in the company which may have piqued investors' interest.   When analyzing insider transactions, it is usually more valuable to know whether insiders are buying versus knowing if they are selling, as the latter sends an ambiguous message.  However, shareholders should take a deeper look if several insiders are selling stock over a specific time period.    

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

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At CoStar Group

In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the Chief Technology Officer, Frank Simuro, sold US$8.3m worth of shares at a price of US$89.65 per share.    That means that an insider was selling shares at below the current price (US$90.34).  As a general rule we consider it to be discouraging when insiders are selling below the current price, because it suggests they were happy with a lower valuation.  Please do note, however, that sellers may have a variety of reasons for selling, so we don't know for sure what they think of the stock price.   It is worth noting that this sale was only 26% of Frank Simuro's holding.    

CoStar Group insiders didn't buy any shares over the last year.    The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year.  If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

NasdaqGS:CSGP Insider Trading Volume April 26th 2024

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

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.   It's great to see that CoStar Group insiders own 1.2% of the company, worth about US$436m.  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 Does This Data Suggest About CoStar Group Insiders?

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 CoStar Group insider transactions don't fill us with confidence.       Therefore, you should definitely take a look at this FREE report showing analyst forecasts for CoStar Group.

Of course CoStar Group 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.