We often see insiders buying up shares in companies that perform well over the long term. Unfortunately, there are also plenty of examples of share prices declining precipitously after insiders have sold shares. So before you buy or sell Bear Creek Mining Corporation (CVE:BCM), you may well want to know whether insiders have been buying or selling.

What Is Insider Selling?

It is perfectly legal for company insiders, including board members, to buy and sell stock in a company. However, most countries require that the company discloses such transactions to the market.

Insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing. But logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares. As Peter Lynch said, 'insiders might sell their shares for any number of reasons, but they buy them for only one: they think the price will rise'.

Check out our latest analysis for Bear Creek Mining

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Bear Creek Mining

In the last twelve months, the biggest single purchase by an insider was when Chief Operating Officer Eric Caba bought CA$88k worth of shares at a price of CA$3.12 per share. So it's clear an insider wanted to buy, even at a higher price than the current share price (being CA$1.41). While their view may have changed since the purchase was made, this does at least suggest they have had confidence in the company's future. We always take careful note of the price insiders pay when purchasing shares. Generally speaking, it catches our eye when insiders have purchased shares at above current prices, as it suggests they believed the shares were worth buying, even at a higher price.

In the last twelve months insiders purchased 48.16k shares for CA$120k. But insiders sold 37.00k shares worth CA$119k. Overall, Bear Creek Mining insiders were net buyers during the last year. The average buy price was around CA$2.49. I'd consider this a positive as it suggests insiders see value at around the current price. 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!

Bear Creek Mining is not the only stock insiders are buying. So take a peek at this free list of growing companies with insider buying.

Bear Creek Mining Insiders Bought Stock Recently

We saw some Bear Creek Mining insider buying shares in the last three months. President Anthony Hawkshaw purchased CA$32k worth of shares in that period. We like it when there are only buyers, and no sellers. But in this case the amount purchased means the recent transaction may not be very meaningful on its own.

Insider Ownership of Bear Creek Mining

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. Based on our data, Bear Creek Mining insiders have about 2.5% of the stock, worth approximately CA$4.4m. I generally like to see higher levels of ownership.

So What Do The Bear Creek Mining Insider Transactions Indicate?

Insider purchases may have been minimal, in the last three months, but there was no selling at all. The net investment is not enough to encourage us much. However, our analysis of transactions over the last year is heartening. While we have no worries about the insider transactions, we'd be more comfortable if they owned more Bear Creek Mining stock. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Bear Creek Mining. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 4 warning signs for Bear Creek Mining (of which 1 shouldn't be ignored!) you should know about.

If you would prefer to check out another company — one with potentially superior financials — then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity 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, but not derivative transactions.

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. 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.

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