Anyone interested in NMI Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:NMIH) should probably be aware that the Executive VP & Chief Risk Officer, Robert Smith, recently divested US$244k worth of shares in the company, at an average price of US$28.67 each. That sale was 26% of their holding, so it does make us raise an eyebrow.

View our latest analysis for NMI Holdings

NMI Holdings Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

The Executive VP & Chief Sales Officer, Norman Fitzgerald, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$393k worth of shares at a price of US$24.03 each. That means that even when the share price was below the current price of US$28.11, an insider wanted to cash in some shares. As a general rule we consider it to be discouraging when insiders are selling below the current price, because it suggests they were happy with a lower valuation. While insider selling is not a positive sign, we can't be sure if it does mean insiders think the shares are fully valued, so it's only a weak sign. This single sale was 60% of Norman Fitzgerald's stake.

Insiders in NMI Holdings 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!

I will like NMI Holdings better if I see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out this free list of growing companies with considerable, recent, insider buying.

Insider Ownership

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. Insiders own 1.5% of NMI Holdings shares, worth about US$34m. We've certainly seen higher levels of insider ownership elsewhere, but these holdings are enough to suggest alignment between insiders and the other shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At NMI Holdings Tell Us?

An insider hasn't bought NMI Holdings stock in the last three months, but there was some selling. And there weren't any purchases to give us comfort, over the last year. On the plus side, NMI Holdings makes money, and is growing profits. Insiders own shares, but we're still pretty cautious, given the history of sales. So we'd only buy after careful consideration. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing NMI Holdings. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 1 warning sign for NMI Holdings 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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