While Montauk Renewables, Inc. (NASDAQ:MNTK) shareholders have enjoyed a good week with stock up 11%, they need remain vigilant. Although prices were relatively low, insiders chose to sell US$2.0m worth of stock in the past 12 months. This could be a sign of impending weakness.

Although we don't think shareholders should simply follow insider transactions, logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares.

View our latest analysis for Montauk Renewables

Montauk Renewables Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

The Vice President of Business Development, Scott Hill, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$1.3m worth of shares at a price of US$12.68 each. While insider selling is a negative, to us, it is more negative if the shares are sold at a lower price. It's of some comfort that this sale was conducted at a price well above the current share price, which is US$10.78. So it may not shed much light on insider confidence at current levels.

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

If you are like me, then you will not want to miss this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying.

Insider Ownership

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. Montauk Renewables insiders own about US$843m worth of shares (which is 55% of the company). I like to see this level of insider ownership, because it increases the chances that management are thinking about the best interests of shareholders.

So What Does This Data Suggest About Montauk Renewables Insiders?

It doesn't really mean much that no insider has traded Montauk Renewables shares in the last quarter. It's heartening that insiders own plenty of stock, but we'd like to see more insider buying, since the last year of Montauk Renewables insider transactions don't fill us with confidence. So while it's helpful to know what insiders are doing in terms of buying or selling, it's also helpful to know the risks that a particular company is facing. Case in point: We've spotted 2 warning signs for Montauk Renewables 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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