Those following along with Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) will no doubt be intrigued by the recent purchase of shares by Seifollah Ghasemi, Chairman of the company, who spent a stonking US$2.9m on stock at an average price of US$264. While that only increased their holding size by 1.7%, it is still a big swing by our standards.

Check out our latest analysis for Air Products and Chemicals

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Air Products and Chemicals

Notably, that recent purchase by Seifollah Ghasemi is the biggest insider purchase of Air Products and Chemicals shares that we've seen in the last year. So it's clear an insider wanted to buy, at around the current price, which is US$274. Of course they may have changed their mind. But this suggests they are optimistic. We do always like to see insider buying, but it is worth noting if those purchases were made at well below today's share price, as the discount to value may have narrowed with the rising price. Happily, the Air Products and Chemicals insider decided to buy shares at close to current prices. The only individual insider to buy over the last year was Seifollah Ghasemi.

Seifollah Ghasemi bought a total of 21.00k shares over the year at an average price of US$259. 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!

Air Products and Chemicals is not the only stock that insiders are buying. For those who like to find winning investments this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

Does Air Products and Chemicals Boast High 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. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. Air Products and Chemicals insiders own about US$203m worth of shares (which is 0.3% 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.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Air Products and Chemicals Tell Us?

The recent insider purchase is heartening. And an analysis of the transactions over the last year also gives us confidence. Along with the high insider ownership, this analysis suggests that insiders are quite bullish about Air Products and Chemicals. One for the watchlist, at least! So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. To assist with this, we've discovered 2 warning signs that you should run your eye over to get a better picture of Air Products and Chemicals.

If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity and low debt.

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.