SunCoke Energy, Inc.'s (NYSE:SXC) stock price has dropped 11% in the previous week, but insiders who sold US$291k in stock over the past year have had less luck. Given that the average selling price of US$9.59 is still lower than the current share price, insiders would probably have been better off keeping their shares.

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 SunCoke Energy

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At SunCoke Energy

The Senior Vice President of Commercial Operations, Phillip Hardesty, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$153k worth of shares at a price of US$9.27 each. While insider selling is a negative, to us, it is more negative if the shares are sold at a lower price. The good news is that this large sale was at well above current price of US$8.42. So it may not shed much light on insider confidence at current levels. Phillip Hardesty was the only individual insider to sell over the last year.

Phillip Hardesty ditched 30.31k shares over the year. The average price per share was US$9.59. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

If you like to buy stocks that insiders are buying, rather than selling, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).

SunCoke Energy Insiders Are Selling The Stock

Over the last three months, we've seen significant insider selling at SunCoke Energy. In total, Senior Vice President of Commercial Operations Phillip Hardesty dumped US$153k worth of shares in that time, and we didn't record any purchases whatsoever. In light of this it's hard to argue that all the insiders think that the shares are a bargain.

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. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. From our data, it seems that SunCoke Energy insiders own 1.3% of the company, worth about US$9.9m. Overall, this level of ownership isn't that impressive, but it's certainly better than nothing!

What Might The Insider Transactions At SunCoke Energy Tell Us?

An insider sold SunCoke Energy shares recently, but they didn't buy any. And even if we look at the last year, we didn't see any purchases. Insiders own relatively few shares in the company, and when you consider the sales, we're not particularly excited about the stock. So we'd only buy after very careful consideration. So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. To that end, you should learn about the 5 warning signs we've spotted with SunCoke Energy (including 1 which doesn't sit too well with us).

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of interesting 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.