Potential iHeartMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:IHRT) shareholders may wish to note that the Chairman & CEO, Robert Pittman, recently bought US$206k worth of stock, paying US$2.06 for each share. While that's a very decent purchase to our minds, it was proportionally a bit modest, boosting their holding by just 7.3%.
See our latest analysis for iHeartMedia
iHeartMedia Insider Transactions Over The Last Year
Notably, that recent purchase by Chairman & CEO Robert Pittman was not the only time they bought iHeartMedia shares this year. Earlier in the year, they paid US$5.56 per share in a US$525k purchase. That means that even when the share price was higher than US$2.43 (the recent price), an insider wanted to purchase shares. While their view may have changed since the purchase was made, this does at least suggest they have had confidence in the company's future. In our view, the price an insider pays for shares is very important. Generally speaking, it catches our eye when insiders have purchased shares at above current prices, as it suggests they believed the shares were worth buying, even at a higher price.
In the last twelve months iHeartMedia insiders were buying shares, but not selling. Their average price was about US$4.00. I'd consider this a positive as it suggests insiders see value at around the current price. 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!
iHeartMedia is not the only stock insiders are buying. So take a peek at this free list of growing companies with insider buying.
Insider Ownership
For a common shareholder, it is worth checking how many shares are held by company insiders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. From our data, it seems that iHeartMedia insiders own 2.1% of the company, worth about US$7.5m. Whilst better than nothing, we're not overly impressed by these holdings.
What Might The Insider Transactions At iHeartMedia Tell Us?
It's certainly positive to see the recent insider purchase. And an analysis of the transactions over the last year also gives us confidence. However, we note that the company didn't make a profit over the last twelve months, which makes us cautious. We would certainly prefer see higher levels of insider ownership but analysis of the insider transactions suggests that iHeartMedia insiders are expecting a bright future. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing iHeartMedia. For example, iHeartMedia has 3 warning signs (and 2 which are potentially serious) we think you should know about.
But note: iHeartMedia 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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