Over the past year, many Kinsale Capital Group, Inc. (NYSE:KNSL) 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.

See our latest analysis for Kinsale Capital Group

Kinsale Capital Group Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

The President, Michael Kehoe, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$1.1m worth of shares at a price of US$383 each. We generally don't like to see insider selling, but the lower the sale price, the more it concerns us. The silver lining is that this sell-down took place above the latest price (US$338). So it may not shed much light on insider confidence at current levels.

Insiders in Kinsale Capital Group didn't buy any shares in 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!

If you are like me, then you will not want to miss this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying.

Kinsale Capital Group Insiders Are Selling The Stock

The last three months saw significant insider selling at Kinsale Capital Group. In total, insiders dumped US$526k 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.

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. Kinsale Capital Group insiders own about US$425m worth of shares (which is 5.2% of the company). This kind of significant ownership by insiders does generally increase the chance that the company is run in the interest of all shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Kinsale Capital Group Tell Us?

Insiders sold Kinsale Capital Group shares recently, but they didn't buy any. Looking to the last twelve months, our data doesn't show any insider buying. But it is good to see that Kinsale Capital Group is growing earnings. It is good to see high insider ownership, but the insider selling leaves us cautious. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Kinsale Capital Group. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 1 warning sign for Kinsale Capital Group you should know about.

Of course Kinsale Capital 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.