OptionsHawk monitors insider trading activity daily and pay the greatest attention to insider buying as while selling is done for a multitude of reasons, buying is always a positive signal from management. We often notice insider activity aligning with key technical/valuation levels and can also draw conclusions from related options activity. We focus on the most intriguing insider buys which may be ones at attractive valuation, ones that are large and/or rare, or when buyers are active with shares strong and near highs.
Trading Spotlight – Plantronics (PLT)
Weyerhaeuser (WY) first notable open market buy in the name this week since 2018 when a director bought 10,000 shares at $29.11. The $20.8B company trades 32.5X earnings and 3.2X sales with mid-single digit growth. Shares are down 8% for the year and rolling over...
Trading Spotlight – Zimmer Biomet (ZBH)
Zimmer Biomet (ZBH) with six different insiders buying stock this week on 2/5, 2/6, and 2/7 with shares trading between $117 and $120. The largest buy was from a Director on 2/6 who bought nearly $500K in stock at $117.41. CEO Bryan Hanson also added $250K in stock...
Trading Spotlight – Discover (DFS)
Discover (DFS) with a large insider buy last week from President/CEO Roger Hochschild of 30,000 shares at $66.67, a $2M investment. This is the largest insider buy since 2009 when former CEO bought $555K in stock. DFS shares are down 16.5% over the last year but...
Trading Spotlight – Valvoline (VVV)
Valvoline (VVV) with a sizable insider buy on 1/14 when CEO Samuel Mitchell bought 25,000 shares at $20.78, a more than $519,000 investment. This is the first open market buy in the name since 2017 when a Director bought stock at $23 and the largest buy since 2016...
Trading Spotlight – Hartford (HIG)
Hartford (HIG) with two notable insider buys late in December and in early January into weakness. On 12/11, a Director bought $207,000 in stock at $41.44 and on 1/10 the COB/CEO bought $500,000 in stock at $43.73. HIG is down over 15% over the last six months, down...
Trading Spotlight – Medtronic (MDT)
Medtronic (MDT) with two notable insider buys last week from CFO Karen Parkhill and Chairman/CEO Omar Ishrak. The latter bought 12,000 shares around $84, a more than $1M buy and largest since late 2016. The $114.5B company is down over 6% for the year, lagging the...
Trading Spotlight – Technip FMC (FTI)
Technip FMC (FTI) with a sizable insider buy on 12/31 from CEO Doug Pferdehirt of 50,000 shares at $19.20, a more than $960K investment. This is the largest open market buy in the name since the merger and Pferdehirt’s first open market buy since 2015 when he bought...