Some Tenet Healthcare Corporation (NYSE:THC) shareholders may be a little concerned to see that the Independent Director, Meghan FitzGerald, recently sold a substantial US$2.9m worth of stock at a price of US$146 per share. That diminished their holding by a very significant 72%, which arguably implies a strong desire to reallocate capital.

Tenet Healthcare Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

The Lead Independent Director, Joseph Kerrey, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$3.2m worth of shares at a price of US$135 each. That means that even when the share price was below the current price of US$150, an insider wanted to cash in some shares. When an insider sells below the current price, it suggests that they considered that lower price to be fair. That makes us wonder what they think of the (higher) recent valuation. While insider selling is not a positive sign, we can't be sure if it does mean insiders think the shares are fully valued, so it's only a weak sign. It is worth noting that this sale was 51% of Joseph Kerrey's holding.

Insiders in Tenet Healthcare didn't buy any shares in the last year. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. 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 Of Tenet Healthcare

Looking at the total insider shareholdings in a company can help to inform your view of whether they are well aligned with common shareholders. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. It's great to see that Tenet Healthcare insiders own 1.2% of the company, worth about US$170m. Most shareholders would be happy to see this sort of insider ownership, since it suggests that management incentives are well aligned with other shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Tenet Healthcare Tell Us?

Insiders sold Tenet Healthcare shares recently, but they didn't buy any. Looking to the last twelve months, our data doesn't show any insider buying. But since Tenet Healthcare is profitable and growing, we're not too worried by this. It is good to see high insider ownership, but the insider selling leaves us cautious. 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've found that Tenet Healthcare has 4 warning signs (1 can't be ignored!) that deserve your attention before going any further with your analysis.

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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.