We wouldn't blame Avadel Pharmaceuticals plc (NASDAQ:AVDL) shareholders if they were a little worried about the fact that Mark McCamish, the Independent Director recently netted about US$1.1m selling shares at an average price of US$14.53. That diminished their holding by a very significant 53%, which arguably implies a strong desire to reallocate capital.

View our latest analysis for Avadel Pharmaceuticals

Avadel Pharmaceuticals Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

In fact, the recent sale by Mark McCamish was the biggest sale of Avadel Pharmaceuticals 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$14.12. We generally don't like to see insider selling, but the lower the sale price, the more it concerns us. We note that this sale took place at around the current price, so it isn't a major concern, though it's hardly a good sign.

Happily, we note that in the last year insiders paid US$566k for 41.50k shares. On the other hand they divested 103.98k shares, for US$1.5m. Mark McCamish divested 103.98k shares over the last 12 months at an average price of US$14.64. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!

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

Does Avadel Pharmaceuticals Boast High Insider Ownership?

Looking at the total insider shareholdings in a company can help to inform your view of whether they are well aligned with common shareholders. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. Avadel Pharmaceuticals insiders own about US$56m worth of shares. That equates to 4.4% 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 Do The Avadel Pharmaceuticals Insider Transactions Indicate?

An insider sold stock recently, but they haven't been buying. And our longer term analysis of insider transactions didn't bring confidence, either. Insiders own shares, but we're still pretty cautious, given the history of sales. We're in no rush to buy! So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. Case in point: We've spotted 2 warning signs for Avadel Pharmaceuticals 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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