Multiple insiders secured a larger position in Nuvation Bio Inc. (NYSE:NUVB) shares over the last 12 months. This is reassuring as this suggests that insiders have increased optimism about the company's prospects.

While we would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Nuvation Bio

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by Independent Director Kim Blickenstaff for US$500k worth of shares, at about US$2.90 per share. So it's clear an insider wanted to buy, even at a higher price than the current share price (being US$2.57). While their view may have changed since the purchase was made, this does at least suggest they have had confidence in the company's future. To us, it's very important to consider the price insiders pay for shares. It is generally more encouraging if they paid above the current price, as it suggests they saw value, even at higher levels.

In the last twelve months Nuvation Bio insiders were buying shares, but not selling. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!

There are plenty of other companies that have insiders buying up shares. You probably do not want to miss this free list of undervalued small cap companies that insiders are buying.

Nuvation Bio Insiders Bought Stock Recently

It's good to see that Nuvation Bio insiders have made notable investments in the company's shares. Specifically, insider Robert Mashal bought US$220k worth of shares in that time, and we didn't record any sales whatsoever. This is a positive in our book as it implies some confidence.

Insider Ownership

Another way to test the alignment between the leaders of a company and other shareholders is to look at how many shares they own. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. Nuvation Bio insiders own about US$215m worth of shares (which is 25% of the company). This kind of significant ownership by insiders does generally increase the chance that the company is run in the interest of all shareholders.

So What Does This Data Suggest About Nuvation Bio Insiders?

It's certainly positive to see the recent insider purchase. We also take confidence from the longer term picture of insider transactions. However, we note that the company didn't make a profit over the last twelve months, which makes us cautious. Once you factor in the high insider ownership, it certainly seems like insiders are positive about Nuvation Bio. Looks promising! So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. Case in point: We've spotted 4 warning signs for Nuvation Bio you should be aware of, and 1 of these is concerning.

Of course Nuvation Bio 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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