We wouldn't blame Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company (NYSE:HPE) shareholders if they were a little worried about the fact that Antonio Neri, the CEO, President & Director recently netted about US$5.2m selling shares at an average price of US$20.73. That's a big disposal, and it decreased their holding size by 14%, which is notable but not too bad.
The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Hewlett Packard Enterprise
In fact, the recent sale by Antonio Neri was the biggest sale of Hewlett Packard Enterprise shares made by an insider individual in the last twelve months, according to our records. That means that an insider was selling shares at below the current price (US$20.94). As a general rule we consider it to be discouraging when insiders are selling below the current price, because it suggests they were happy with a lower valuation. However, while insider selling is sometimes discouraging, it's only a weak signal. This single sale was just 14% of Antonio Neri's stake.
Hewlett Packard Enterprise 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!
If you like to buy stocks that insiders are buying, rather than selling, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: Most of them are flying under the radar).
Insider Ownership Of Hewlett Packard Enterprise
I like to look at how many shares insiders own in a company, to help inform my view of how aligned they are with insiders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. It appears that Hewlett Packard Enterprise insiders own 0.4% of the company, worth about US$96m. 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 Hewlett Packard Enterprise Tell Us?
An insider sold stock recently, but they haven't been buying. Looking to the last twelve months, our data doesn't show any insider buying. But it is good to see that Hewlett Packard Enterprise is growing earnings. Insiders own shares, but we're still pretty cautious, given the history of sales. So we'd only buy after careful consideration. So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. To assist with this, we've discovered 2 warning signs that you should run your eye over to get a better picture of Hewlett Packard Enterprise.
But note: Hewlett Packard Enterprise 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.
