Some Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. (NYSE:VRTS) shareholders may be a little concerned to see that the Executive VP, Michael Angerthal, recently sold a substantial US$1.9m worth of stock at a price of US$233 per share. That sale reduced their total holding by 11% which is hardly insignificant, but far from the worst we've seen.

Virtus Investment Partners Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Notably, that recent sale by Michael Angerthal is the biggest insider sale of Virtus Investment Partners shares that we've seen in the last year. So we know that an insider sold shares at around the present share price of US$232. 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).

The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

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

Does Virtus Investment Partners Boast High Insider Ownership?

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. Virtus Investment Partners insiders own about US$100m worth of shares. That equates to 6.0% of the company. While this is a strong but not outstanding level of insider ownership, it's enough to indicate some alignment between management and smaller shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Virtus Investment Partners Tell Us?

An insider sold stock recently, but they haven't been buying. And even if we look at the last year, we didn't see any purchases. But it is good to see that Virtus Investment Partners is growing earnings. Insiders own shares, but we're still pretty cautious, given the history of sales. We'd practice some caution before buying! So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. At Simply Wall St, we found 1 warning sign for Virtus Investment Partners that deserve your attention before buying any shares.

Of course Virtus Investment Partners 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.