We wouldn't blame Synaptics Incorporated (NASDAQ:SYNA) shareholders if they were a little worried about the fact that Kermit Nolan, the Corporate VP & Chief Accounting Officer recently netted about US$1.1m selling shares at an average price of US$104. That's a big disposal, and it decreased their holding size by 28%, which is notable but not too bad.

View our latest analysis for Synaptics

Synaptics Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the President, Michael E. Hurlston, sold US$4.0m worth of shares at a price of US$86.51 per share. That means that an insider was selling shares at slightly below the current price (US$106). We generally consider it a negative if insiders have been selling, especially if they did so below the current price, because it implies that they considered a lower price to be reasonable. Please do note, however, that sellers may have a variety of reasons for selling, so we don't know for sure what they think of the stock price. We note that the biggest single sale was only 20% of Michael E. Hurlston's holding.

Insiders in Synaptics didn't buy any shares in the last year. 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!

If you like to buy stocks that insiders are buying, rather than selling, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).

Insider Ownership Of Synaptics

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. Synaptics insiders own about US$56m worth of shares. That equates to 1.4% 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 Synaptics Insider Transactions Indicate?

Insiders sold Synaptics shares recently, but they didn't buy any. And there weren't any purchases to give us comfort, over the last year. Insider ownership isn't particularly high, so this analysis makes us cautious about the company. So we'd only buy after careful consideration. While we like knowing what's going on with the insider's ownership and transactions, we make sure to also consider what risks are facing a stock before making any investment decision. Case in point: We've spotted 1 warning sign for Synaptics you should be aware of.

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.