Some Centessa Pharmaceuticals plc (NASDAQ:CNTA) shareholders may be a little concerned to see that the CEO & Director, Saurabh Saha, recently sold a substantial US$864k worth of stock at a price of US$15.70 per share. That sale reduced their total holding by 16% which is hardly insignificant, but far from the worst we've seen.

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Centessa Pharmaceuticals

Notably, that recent sale by Saurabh Saha is the biggest insider sale of Centessa Pharmaceuticals shares that we've seen in the last year. So what is clear is that an insider saw fit to sell at around the current price of US$15.50. We generally don't like to see insider selling, but the lower the sale price, the more it concerns us. In this case, the big sale took place at around the current price, so it's not too bad (but it's still not a positive).

Insiders in Centessa Pharmaceuticals didn't buy any shares in the last year. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

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

Insider Ownership Of Centessa Pharmaceuticals

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 Centessa Pharmaceuticals insiders own 2.0% of the company, worth about US$39m. We've certainly seen higher levels of insider ownership elsewhere, but these holdings are enough to suggest alignment between insiders and the other shareholders.

So What Does This Data Suggest About Centessa Pharmaceuticals Insiders?

Insiders haven't bought Centessa Pharmaceuticals stock in the last three months, but there was some selling. And even if we look at the last year, we didn't see any purchases. While insiders do own shares, they don't own a heap, and they have been selling. So we'd only buy after careful consideration. So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. For example - Centessa Pharmaceuticals has 3 warning signs we think you should be aware of.

Of course Centessa Pharmaceuticals 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.