The recent 8.7% drop in SY Holdings Group Limited's (HKG:6069) stock could come as a blow to insiders who purchased CN¥8.0m worth of stock at an average buy price of CN¥7.05 over the past 12 months. This is not good as insiders invest based on expectations that their money will appreciate over time. However, as a result of recent losses, their original investment is now worth only CN¥5.7m.

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.

Check out our latest analysis for SY Holdings Group

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At SY Holdings Group

In the last twelve months, the biggest single purchase by an insider was when Chairman Chi Fung Tung bought HK$3.0m worth of shares at a price of HK$7.20 per share. That means that an insider was happy to buy shares at above the current price of HK$5.03. It's very possible they regret the purchase, but it's more likely they are bullish about the company. To us, it's very important to consider the price insiders pay for shares. As a general rule, we feel more positive about a stock if insiders have bought shares at above current prices, because that suggests they viewed the stock as good value, even at a higher price.

Happily, we note that in the last year insiders paid HK$8.0m for 1.14m shares. On the other hand they divested 446.00k shares, for HK$2.6m. In the last twelve months there was more buying than selling by SY Holdings Group insiders. You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last 12 months, below. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

SY Holdings Group is not the only stock that insiders are buying. 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 SY Holdings Group Have Sold Stock Recently

The last quarter saw substantial insider selling of SY Holdings Group shares. In total, Deputy GM & Executive Director Jen-Tse Chen sold HK$2.6m worth of shares in that time, and we didn't record any purchases whatsoever. Overall this makes us a bit cautious, but it's not the be all and end all.

Does SY Holdings Group Boast High 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. SY Holdings Group insiders own about HK$2.8b worth of shares (which is 56% of the company). Most shareholders would be happy to see this sort of insider ownership, since it suggests that management incentives are well aligned with other shareholders.

So What Do The SY Holdings Group Insider Transactions Indicate?

An insider sold stock recently, but they haven't been buying. In contrast, they appear keener if you look at the last twelve months. We are also comforted by the high levels of insider ownership. So we're not too bothered by recent selling. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing SY Holdings Group. Case in point: We've spotted 4 warning signs for SY Holdings Group you should be aware of, and 1 of them can't be ignored.

If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity 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, 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.