Insiders were net sellers of NewMarket Corporation's (NYSE:NEU ) stock during the past year. That is, insiders sold more stock than they bought.

Although we don't think shareholders should simply follow insider transactions, logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares.

NewMarket Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

The Chairman, Thomas Gottwald, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$2.9m worth of shares at a price of US$648 each. While we don't usually like to see insider selling, it's more concerning if the sales take place at a lower price. The silver lining is that this sell-down took place above the latest price (US$514). So it may not tell us anything about how insiders feel about the current share price. The only individual insider seller over the last year was Thomas Gottwald.

Thomas Gottwald sold a total of 8.10k shares over the year at an average price of US$645. 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!

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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. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. NewMarket insiders own about US$1.1b worth of shares (which is 22% of the company). Most shareholders would be happy to see this sort of insider ownership, since it suggests that management incentives are well aligned with other shareholders.

So What Do The NewMarket Insider Transactions Indicate?

It doesn't really mean much that no insider has traded NewMarket shares in the last quarter. It's great to see high levels of insider ownership, but looking back over the last year, we don't gain confidence from the NewMarket insiders selling. 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 NewMarket that deserve your attention before buying any shares.

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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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.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com