We'd be surprised if Sound Financial Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFBC) shareholders haven't noticed that the Independent Director, James Sweeney, recently sold US$106k worth of stock at US$53.61 per share. The eyebrow raising move amounted to a reduction of 10% in their holding.

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Sound Financial Bancorp

In fact, the recent sale by James Sweeney was the biggest sale of Sound Financial Bancorp shares made by an insider individual in the last twelve months, according to our records. So we know that an insider sold shares at around the present share price of US$53.22. 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 Sound Financial Bancorp 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. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!

If you are like me, then you will not want to miss this free list of small cap stocks that are not only being bought by insiders but also have attractive valuations.

Insider Ownership

I like to look at how many shares insiders own in a company, to help inform my view of how aligned they are with insiders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. Sound Financial Bancorp insiders own about US$16m worth of shares. That equates to 11% of the company. 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 Sound Financial Bancorp Insiders?

Insiders sold Sound Financial Bancorp shares recently, but they didn't buy any. And there weren't any purchases to give us comfort, over the last year. Insiders own shares, but we're still pretty cautious, given the history of sales. We'd practice some caution before buying! 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 4 warning signs for Sound Financial Bancorp you should be aware of, and 1 of them makes us a bit uncomfortable.

Of course Sound Financial Bancorp 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.