Viewing insider transactions for OPENLANE, Inc.'s (NYSE:KAR ) over the last year, we see that insiders were net buyers. This means that a larger number of shares were purchased by insiders in relation to shares sold.

While insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing, we do think it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing.

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At OPENLANE

The CEO & Director Peter Kelly made the biggest insider purchase in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$508k worth of shares at a price of US$14.98 each. Even though the purchase was made at a significantly lower price than the recent price (US$17.18), we still think insider buying is a positive. Because it occurred at a lower valuation, it doesn't tell us much about whether insiders might find today's price attractive.

You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last 12 months, below. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

There are always plenty of stocks that insiders are buying. If investing in lesser known companies is your style, you could take a look at this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).

OPENLANE Insiders Are Selling The Stock

The last quarter saw substantial insider selling of OPENLANE shares. Specifically, Executive VP & President of North American Marketplaces James Coyle ditched US$109k worth of shares in that time, and we didn't record any purchases whatsoever. This may suggest that some insiders think that the shares are not cheap.

Insider Ownership

Looking at the total insider shareholdings in a company can help to inform your view of whether they are well aligned with common shareholders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. It appears that OPENLANE insiders own 2.1% of the company, worth about US$39m. 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 Does This Data Suggest About OPENLANE Insiders?

An insider hasn't bought OPENLANE stock in the last three months, but there was some selling. On the other hand, the insider transactions over the last year are encouraging. We like that insiders own a fair amount of the company. So we're happy enough to look past some selling. So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. While conducting our analysis, we found that OPENLANE has 1 warning sign and it would be unwise to ignore this.

Of course OPENLANE 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.