Insiders At Asbury Automotive Group Sold US$3.6m In Stock, Alluding To Potential Weakness

Over the past year, many Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) insiders sold a significant stake in the company which may have piqued investors' interest. When evaluating insider transactions, knowing whether insiders are buying is usually more beneficial than knowing whether they are selling, as the latter can be open to many interpretations. However, if numerous insiders are selling, shareholders should investigate more.

While we would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing, we do think it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing.

See our latest analysis for Asbury Automotive Group

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Asbury Automotive Group

In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the President, David Hult, sold US$1.9m worth of shares at a price of US$234 per share. So what is clear is that an insider saw fit to sell at around the current price of US$231. We generally don't like to see insider selling, but the lower the sale price, the more it concerns us. In this case, the big sale took place at around the current price, so it's not too bad (but it's still not a positive).

In the last year Asbury Automotive Group insiders didn't buy any company stock. 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!

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Asbury Automotive Group Insiders Are Selling The Stock

Over the last three months, we've seen significant insider selling at Asbury Automotive Group. Specifically, Chief Operating Officer Daniel Clara ditched US$361k 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.

Does Asbury Automotive Group 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. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. Asbury Automotive Group insiders own about US$29m worth of shares. That equates to 0.6% of the company. While this is a strong but not outstanding level of insider ownership, it's enough to indicate some alignment between management and smaller shareholders.

So What Do The Asbury Automotive Group Insider Transactions Indicate?

An insider sold stock recently, but they haven't been buying. Looking to the last twelve months, our data doesn't show any insider buying. Insiders own shares, but we're still pretty cautious, given the history of sales. We'd practice some caution before buying! In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Asbury Automotive Group. For example, Asbury Automotive Group has 4 warning signs (and 1 which is concerning) we think you should know about.

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.