Over the past year, many Jack in the Box Inc. (NASDAQ:JACK) insiders sold a significant stake in the company which may have piqued investors' interest. When evaluating insider transactions, knowing whether insiders are buying versus if they selling is usually more beneficial, as the latter can be open to many interpretations. However, when multiple insiders sell stock over a specific duration, shareholders should take notice as that could possibly be a red flag.

While insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing, logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares.

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Jack in the Box

In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the CEO & Director, Darin Harris, sold US$558k worth of shares at a price of US$68.01 per share. 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$55.23. So it is hard to draw any strong conclusion from it.

Insiders in Jack in the Box didn't buy any shares in 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!

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Insiders At Jack in the Box Have Sold Stock Recently

Over the last three months, we've seen significant insider selling at Jack in the Box. In total, insiders sold US$139k 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.

Does Jack in the Box Boast High Insider Ownership?

I like to look at how many shares insiders own in a company, to help inform my view of how aligned they are with insiders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. From our data, it seems that Jack in the Box insiders own 0.5% of the company, worth about US$5.6m. Overall, this level of ownership isn't that impressive, but it's certainly better than nothing!

What Might The Insider Transactions At Jack in the Box Tell Us?

Insiders sold Jack in the Box 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 while it's helpful to know what insiders are doing in terms of buying or selling, it's also helpful to know the risks that a particular company is facing. Be aware that Jack in the Box is showing 3 warning signs in our investment analysis, and 1 of those makes us a bit uncomfortable...

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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.