We wouldn't blame UMB Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:UMBF) shareholders if they were a little worried about the fact that J. Kemper, the Chairman & CEO recently netted about US$1.9m selling shares at an average price of US$80.91. However, it's crucial to note that they remain very much invested in the stock and that sale only reduced their holding by 1.1%.

UMB Financial Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

In fact, the recent sale by J. Kemper was the biggest sale of UMB Financial shares made by an insider individual in the last twelve months, according to our records. So what is clear is that an insider saw fit to sell at around the current price of US$79.27. 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.

In the last twelve months insiders purchased 6.45k shares for US$398k. On the other hand they divested 101.35k shares, for US$7.2m. Over the last year we saw more insider selling of UMB Financial shares, than buying. 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 are like me, then you will not want to miss this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying.

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. UMB Financial insiders own 5.2% of the company, currently worth about US$204m based on the recent share price. This kind of significant ownership by insiders does generally increase the chance that the company is run in the interest of all shareholders.

So What Does This Data Suggest About UMB Financial Insiders?

Unfortunately, there has been more insider selling of UMB Financial stock, than buying, in the last three months. Zooming out, the longer term picture doesn't give us much comfort. While insiders do own a lot of shares in the company (which is good), our analysis of their transactions doesn't make us feel confident about the company. 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. You'd be interested to know, that we found 1 warning sign for UMB Financial and we suggest you have a look.

Of course UMB Financial 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.