Anyone interested in Granite Construction Incorporated (NYSE:GVA) should probably be aware that the Senior VP of Construction, Michael Tatusko, recently divested US$346k worth of shares in the company, at an average price of US$69.22 each. That sale was 15% of their holding, so it does make us raise an eyebrow.

Granite Construction Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

In fact, the recent sale by Michael Tatusko was the biggest sale of Granite Construction shares made by an insider individual in the last twelve months, according to our records. That means that an insider was selling shares at around the current price of US$68.98. 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).

Granite Construction insiders didn't buy any shares over the last year. 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!

For those who like to find hidden gems this free list of small cap companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

Does Granite Construction 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. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. Insiders own 0.9% of Granite Construction shares, worth about US$27m. This level of insider ownership is good but just short of being particularly stand-out. It certainly does suggest a reasonable degree of alignment.

So What Does This Data Suggest About Granite Construction Insiders?

An insider hasn't bought Granite Construction stock in the last three months, but there was some selling. And even if we look at the last year, we didn't see any purchases. But it is good to see that Granite Construction is growing earnings. Insider ownership isn't particularly high, so this analysis makes us cautious about the company. We'd practice some caution before buying! In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Granite Construction. You'd be interested to know, that we found 1 warning sign for Granite Construction and we suggest you have a look.

But note: Granite Construction may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with high ROE 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.