Curious how well insiders are doing with their buys? Scroll through the significant buys of the last year.
The S&P 500 lost 5% points in what was one of its most bruising outings this past week. It’s almost a foregone conclusion we will test the lows of 2022 and enter “bear market territory”. At the cost of being labeled a Perma bull, I will proffer that that that is the time to add, rather than retreat. As painful as it may be, this is where insiders’ buying adds some confidence to a fragile and shaken market. Unfortunately, we are in the midst of earnings blackout periods now and there is little buying. This is the perfect time for bear raids.
Name: Wilderotter Mary Agnes
Position: Director
Transaction Date: 2022-06-07 Shares Bought: 850 Average Price Paid: $470.74 Cost: $400,125.00
Company: Costco Wholesale Corp (COST)
Costco Wholesale Corporation operates membership warehouses in the United States, Puerto Rico, Canada, the United Kingdom, Mexico, Japan, Korea, Australia, Spain, France, Iceland, China, and Taiwan through its subsidiaries. It sells branded and private-label items across a variety of product categories. Sundries, dry groceries, candies, coolers, freezers, liquor, and tobacco and deli products; appliances, electronics, health and beauty aids, hardware, garden and patio products, sporting goods, toys, and seasonal products; office supplies, automotive care products, postages, tickets, apparel, small appliances, furniture, domestics, housewares, special order kiosks, and jewelry; meat, produce, service deli, and bakery products; and meat, produce service deli, and bakery products. It also owns and operates 636 petrol stations, as well as pharmacies, opticals, food courts, hearing-aid facilities, and tire installation centers; and it provides business deliveries, travel, same-day groceries, and other services online in many nations.
Mary Agnes Wilderotter is an entrepreneur who has led seven separate businesses. She is the Chairman of DocuSign, Inc., Grand Reserve Inn’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Co-Chairman of the Committee for Economic Development, and Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Citizens Telecommunications Company of New York, Inc. Ms.Wilderotter also serves on the boards of ten additional firms and is a member of The Business Council, The Committee of 200, and Women Corporate Directors. Mary Agnes Wilderotter formerly worked for Microsoft Corp. as a Senior Vice President of the Worldwide Public Sector and AT&T, Inc. as the CEO of the Aviation Communications Division. Executive Chairman of Frontier Communications Corp., Chairman of the National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee, and President & Chief Executive Officer of Wink Communications, Inc. (both AT&T, Inc. subsidiaries), Senior Vice President of McCaw Cellular Communications, Inc., and Executive Vice President-National Operations at AT&T Wireless Services, Inc. (both AT&T, Inc. subsidiaries), Executive Chairman of Frontier Communications Corp.
Opinion: What’s there not to like about arguably America’s favorite brick-and-mortar shopping experience other than its trading at 36P.E, just 3 points away from its 5-year high. I’d buy COST lower and sell puts much lower if you could get anything for them.
Name: Ragusa Elysia Holt
Position: Director
Transaction Date: 2022-06-02 Shares Bought: 2,000 Average Price Paid: $55.91 Cost: $111,820.00
Company: Texas Capital Bancshares Inc (TCBI)
Texas Capital Bancshares, Inc. is a full-service financial services organization that provides tailored solutions to businesses, entrepreneurs, and individual consumers. Commercial banking, consumer banking, investment banking, and wealth management are all services provided by the organization. It provides commercial deposit accounts, lockbox accounts, and cash concentration accounts, as well as information, wire transfer initiation, ACH initiation, account transfer, and service integration services; and consumer deposit accounts, such as checking accounts, savings accounts, money market accounts, and certificates of deposit. It serves the Texas urban regions of Austin, Fort Worth, Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio. Texas Capital Bancshares, Inc. is based in Dallas, Texas, and was founded in 1996.
In January 2010, Elysia Holt Ragusa was elected to the board of directors. Ms. Ragusa is a principal at RCubetti, a business that specialises in leadership development and consultancy. Elysia served as President and Chief Operating Officer of The Staubach Company (TSC) from 2001 until 2007, before its merger with Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL). She served on the Board of Directors and led the Executive and Operating Committees. Elysia led the due diligence and integration process between The Staubach Company and JLL as a member of the Merger Committee. She became the International Director of JLL after the merger, having responsibility for the Central Texas market’s team and P&L.
Opinion: Although not a significant buy, it’s just one of a long line of insider buying at this Texas-based bank. TCBI pays no dividend although it has a healthy financial ratio. There has been buying in regional banks and we’ve made a little money by trading them, not holding them. A rising rate environment would normally be good for banks assuming the rise in rates is due to an improving economy and not runaway inflation. Right now the market is saying we’re in trouble, that banks earnings will be impacted by the recessionary environment. We’ve traded out quite a bit of TCBI but are keeping a tail.
Name: Shapiro Edward
Position: Director
Transaction Date: 2022-06-02 Shares Bought: 50,000 Average Price Paid: $44.71 Cost: $2,235,273.00
Company: United Airlines Holdings Inc. (UAL)
United Airlines Holdings, Inc. operates air transportation services in North America, Asia, Europe, Africa, the Pacific, the Middle East, and Latin America through its subsidiaries. The company’s mainline and regional fleets convey people and goods. It also provides third-party catering, ground handling, training, and maintenance services. United Continental Holdings, Inc. was the company’s previous name until June 2019, when it was renamed United Airlines Holdings, Inc. United Airlines Holdings, Inc. is based in Chicago, Illinois, and was founded in 1968.
From 1999 until 2016, Mr. Shapiro was the Managing Partner of PAR Capital Management, Inc., a Boston-based investment management business concentrating on travel, media, and Internet-related firms. Mr. Shapiro was previously a Vice President at Wellington Management Company and an Analyst at Morgan Stanley & Co. before joining PAR Capital. Mr. Shapiro sat on the boards of Global Eagle Entertainment, US Airways, Web.com, Lumexis Corporation, and Sonifi Solutions in the past (formerly LodgeNet Interactive Corporation). Mr. Shapiro graduated from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School with a bachelor’s degree in economics and an MBA from UCLA’s Anderson School of Management.
Opinion: Shapiro is smart, knows the business and it doesn’t appear to be a 10b5-1 planned purchase. What gives? Airline travel demand is off the charts and so is fuel, lack of pilots, and investor sentiment. I don’t see anything to make me want to buy but that is precisely the point. Here we have an informed industry insider chucking down $ 2 million reasons to buy. Experience tells me you buy a little and go along for the ride.
Name: Star James A
Position: Director
Transaction Date: 2022-06-06 Shares Bought: 180,636 Average Price Paid: $27.71 Cost: $5,004,809.00
Company: Chewy Inc. (CHWY)
Chewy, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the pure play e-commerce business in the United States. The company provides pet food and treats, pet supplies and pet medications, and other pet-health products, as well as pet services for dogs, cats, fish, birds, small pets, horses, and reptiles through its chewy.com retail Website, as well as its mobile applications. It offers approximately 70,000 products from 2,500 partner brands. The company was founded in 2010 and is headquartered in Dania Beach, Florida. They have everything you need for your pet at amazing prices, every day. Explore more than 2,000 favorite brands, including Blue Buffalo, Nutro, Natural Balance, and Tidy Cats – all from the comfort of home. Their experts are here 24/7 to answer questions and help you find the perfect items for your pet. They also have a 100% Unconditional Satisfaction Guaranteed Policy on every order, just in case, they’re not crazy about that new food or toy. Shopping for your pet has never been easier.
Mr. Star currently serves as Executive Chairman and Investment Committee Chair of Longview Asset Management LLC (‘‘Longview’’), a multi-strategy investment firm that invests on behalf of individuals, trusts, and charitable foundations. From 2003 to 2019, he served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Longview. Since 1994, Mr. Star has also served as Vice President of Henry Crown and Company, a private family office affiliated with Longview. Mr. Star currently serves as a trustee of Equity Commonwealth, a publicly traded REIT (NYSE ‘‘EQC’’), where he chairs the Nominating and Governance Committee. He is a director of the Atreides Foundation Fund Ltd, V-Square Quantitative Management LLC, and the holding company of Teaching Strategies LLC. From 2016 to 2018, Mr. Star served as a director of Allison Transmissions Holdings Inc. (NYSE ‘‘ALSN’’) and, from 2014 to 2019, he was a director of the holding company of PetSmart LLC. He also serves or has served, as a director or trustee of pension funds, registered mutual funds, private companies,fCONCERT PHARMACEUTICALS Inc and a private trust company.
Opinion: I don’t have to do any real research on Chewy other than look at my own apartment building. It’s filled with packages from two vendors. The first you can guess is Amazon, but the second most popular box here is Chewy. When can Chewy turn the corner and make money in this recession-resistant business? It’s all about free cash flow now and the sooner the better.
CHWY rose 20% on a big earnings beat and a large short interest position. Its modest positive earnings and free cash flow is a start. Director Star’s massive $ 5 million purchase is just pocket change for this billionaire. It’s all relative and this is not a big purchase for Star although I’m sure he didn’t get rich by overpaying for everything.
Name: Breaux Paul W.
Position: Vice President
Transaction Date: 2022-06-01 Shares Bought: 15,000 Average Price Paid: $26.24 Cost: $393,600.00
Company: Carvana Co. (CVNA)
Name: Keeton Ryan S.
Position: Chief Brand Officer
Transaction Date: 2022-06-06 Shares Bought: 40,000 Average Price Paid: $24.75 Cost: $989,800.00
Company: Carvana Co. (CVNA)
Carvana Co. is a holding business that operates an e-commerce platform for the purchase of secondhand automobiles. Consumers can use the Company’s platform to research and locate a vehicle, inspect it utilising 360-degree vehicle image technology, acquire finance and warranty coverage, purchase the vehicle, and schedule delivery or pick-up, all from the comfort of their own home or office. Customers can acquire financing, complete a purchase, and schedule delivery or pick-up online using the Company’s transaction technologies and web platform. Customers in select markets can also choose to pick up their automobiles from a vending machine. Over 266 metropolitan markets are served by its in-house distribution network.
Paul Breaux is the Company’s Vice President, General Counsel, and Secretary. From 2008 through 2015, Mr. Breaux worked as an attorney with Andrews Kurth LLP (now Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP) in Houston, Texas. Mr. Breaux’s representative expertise at Andrews Kurth included a wide range of general commercial transaction matters. Mr. Breaux has a Harvard Law School J.D., a University of Texas at Austin B.A. in Plan II Honors, and a University of Texas at Austin B.B.A. in finance.
Since Carvana’s debut in 2012, Ryan Keeton has served as the company’s Chief Brand Officer. From 2010 to 2012, Ryan worked as a principal at the Montero Group, a strategic consulting firm, where he assisted worldwide public and private firms on strategy and commercial initiatives. Ryan worked for George P. Johnson, a worldwide marketing agency, as Director of Strategic Marketing from 2008 until 2010. Ryan graduated from Harvard University with a bachelor’s degree in English and American Literature and Language.
Opinion: This is the worst-looking stock I’ve ever seen with this much insider buying. Usually, insider buying arrests a slide in share price, but short-sellers are relentless here. I have to admit we’ve been wrong about this name to date
Name: Hostetler Kevin G.
Position: CEO
Transaction Date: 2022-06-08 Shares Bought: 37,500 Average Price Paid: $13.33 Cost: $499,875.00
Company: Array Technologies Inc. (ARRY)
Solar tracking systems and associated products are manufactured and distributed by Array Technologies, Inc. in the United States and overseas. DuraTrack HZ v3, a single-axis solar tracking system, and SmarTrack, a machine learning program that identifies the ideal location for a solar array in real time to enhance energy output, are two of the company’s products. The company’s headquarters are in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where it was formed in 1989.
Kevin Hostetler has been named CEO of Array Technologies, a developer of utility-scale solar energy tracking technologies and services. He will also join the board of directors of Array. Jim Fusaro, who declared his plan to retire before the end of the year, is replaced by Hostetler. Hostetler was CEO of Rotork, an FTSE 250 firm, for the last four years, where he managed the company’s Growth Acceleration Program, which enhanced profitability, capital efficiency, and commercial excellence.
Opinion:
Name: Crawford Gordon
Position: Director
Transaction Date: 2022-06-03 Shares Bought: 58,687 Average Price Paid: $9.57 Cost: $561,718.00
Company: Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. (LGF.B)
Lions Gate Entertainment Corporation, doing business as Lionsgate, is an American-Canadian entertainment company. It was formed by Frank Giustra on July 10, 1997, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, and is currently headquartered in Santa Monica, California, United States. In addition to its flagship Lionsgate Films division, the company contains other divisions such as Lionsgate Television and Lionsgate Interactive. It owns a variety of subsidiaries such as Summit Entertainment, Debmar-Mercury, and Starz Inc.
Mr. Gordon Crawford is a Lions Gate Entertainment Corporation independent director. Since February 7th, 2013, He worked for Capital Research and Management, a privately held investment management firm, in several capacities. Mr. Crawford left his position as Senior Vice President in December 2012. Mr. Crawford is now Chairman of the US Olympic and Paralympic Foundation’s Board of Trustees and a Life Trustee on the Board of Trustees of Southern California Public Radio. Mr. Crawford formerly served as Vice Chairman of the Paley Center for Media and Vice Chairman of The Nature Conservancy. Since 1971, Mr. Crawford has been one of the most powerful and successful investors in the media and entertainment sector.
Opinion:
Name: Aldrich Richard
Position: Director
Transaction Date: 2022-06-06 Shares Bought: 210,526 Average Price Paid: $4.75 Cost: $999,999.00
Company: Concert Pharmaceuticals Inc. (CNCE)
Concert Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical business focused on the development of innovative small-molecule medications to treat autoimmune illnesses. CTP-543, the company’s principal product candidate, is in Phase III clinical trials for the treatment of alopecia areata, a severe autoimmune dermatological disorder. Avanir Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Jazz Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Cipla Technologies, and Process Pharmaceuticals are among its key partners. The business was founded in 2006 and is based in Lexington, Massachusetts.
Richard H. Aldrich is a co-founder of our company and has been a member of our Board of Directors and Chairman since May 2006. Since December 2010, Mr. Aldrich has been a Partner at Longwood Fund, a biosciences venture financing business, where he is a co-founder. From 1989 through 2001, Mr. Aldrich was a founding employee of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated, a pharmaceutical business, where he served as Senior Vice President and Chief Business Officer, overseeing all commercial and operational responsibilities. Mr. Aldrich worked at Biogen Inc. for several years before joining Vertex.
Opinion:
Name: Zayas Orlando
Position: CEO
Transaction Date: 2022-06-03 Shares Bought: 128,472 Average Price Paid: $1.56 Cost: $199,973.00
Company: Katapult Holdings Inc (KPLT)
Name: Hirsch Brian
Position: Director
Transaction Date: 2022-06-03 Shares Bought: 150,000 Average Price Paid: $1.50 Cost: $225,659.00
Company: Katapult Holdings Inc (KPLT)
Katapult Holdings, Inc., formerly FinServ Acquisition Corp, is a financial technology business focusing on electronic commerce (e-commerce). Katapult, the Company’s lease-purchase platform, offers an alternative to traditional financing for retailers, consumers, and non-prime customers who want to buy daily durable items from its e-commerce merchant partners. Katapult develops technology that easily connects with online platforms, allowing the Company’s retail partners to increase their consumer base and transactions. E-commerce and in-store retailers can use the company’s platform. It allows consumers to pay weekly, bi-weekly, semi-monthly, or monthly, and it provides payment choices such as allowing clients to pay for their entire renewal term, buyout, or return products if life cycle events occur, among other things.
Orlando Zayas is a corporate leader that specializes in launching company growth through strategic direction. While most providers were focused on brick and mortar, he joined Katapult in 2017 with the goal of building the greatest point of sale payment platform in the eCommerce industry. Through quick-turn integrations, best-in-class decisioning engines, and merchant support teams, Katapult swiftly became a leader in the financial technology industry under Orlando’s vision and leadership. Orlando formerly served as CEO of DRB Capital, President of TEMPOE, GE Capital’s Emerging Markets-Auto team leader, and Safe-Guard Product, International President Orlando has been personally responsible for the introduction of new systems and procedures that positioned each company for growth during his career of growing leadership responsibilities in insurance, operations, marketing, and auto-related product lines.
Mr. Brian Hirsch is a Managing Partner of Tribeca Venture Partners and a Co-Founder. In addition, he serves on the boards of Truveris, Actuate, Bakpax, Vivvi, Lendio, and Crafty. He has served on the boards of Domio, RealDirect, and Katapult. Brian was a co-founder and managing director of GSA Venture Partners, previously Greenhill & Co’s venture arm, prior to founding Tribeca Venture Partners (NYSE: GHL). Brian was a Principal at Sterling Venture Partners and a Vice President at ABN AMRO Private Equity before joining GSAVP. Throughout his career, Brian has made investments in a variety of industries, including fintech, edtech, mobile, healthcare, internet marketing, and media/publishing. Brian graduated from Brandeis University with a BA in economics and American studies.
Opinion: Another lease to purchase space in the crowded pay later model. Avoid at all possible costs.
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Insiders sell the stock for many reasons, but they generally buy for just one – to make money. You’ve always heard the best information is inside information. Everyone who has any experience at all in the stock market pays close attention to what insiders are doing. After all, who knows a business better than the people running it? Officers, directors, and 10% owners are required to inform the public through a Form 4 Filing any transaction, buy, sell, exercise, or any other within 48 hours of doing so. This info is available for free from the SEC’s Web site, Edgar, although we subscribe to SECForm4 as they provide a way to manage and make sense of the vast realms of data. I’ve tried a lot of vendors. SECForm4 is one of the smaller ones but I like supporting Frank. He is not arrogant. He’s helpful and has great prices. He also trades on his own data so I like people that eat what they kill.
We publish a subscription newsletter called The Insiders Report. We offer a free 30-day trial so you have nothing to lose by trying it out. Be sure to carefully read the TERMS OF SERVICE.
qThe bar is different from selling because the natural state of management is to be sellers. This is because most companies provide significant amounts of management compensation packages as stock and options. Therefore, with selling, we analyze for unusual patterns, such as insiders selling 25 percent or more of their holdings or multiple insiders selling near 52-week lows. Another red flag is large planned sale programs that start without warning. Unfortunately, the public information disclosure requirements about these programs referred to as Rule 10b5-1 is horrendously poor. Also planned sales that just pop up out of nowhere are basically sales and are seeking cover under the Sarbanes Oxley corporate welfare clause. I also generally ignore 10 percent shareholders as they tend to be OPM (other people’s money) and perhaps not the smart money we are trying to read the tea leaves on.q
Of course, insiders can also be wrong about their Company’s prospects. Don’t let anyone fool you into believing they never make mistakes. Do your own analysis. They can easily be wrong about, and in many cases, maybe most cases have no more idea what the future may hold than you or me. In short, you can lose money following them. We have and we curse aloud, what were they thinking!
We like Fly on the Wall for keeping up with what events might be happening, analysts’ comments, and whatever else could be moving the stock. Dow Jones news service is an essential tool but many services pick up their feed like they do Bloomberg. For quick financial analysis, it’s hard to beat Old School Value.
No one tracks and understands insider behavior better than us. We’ve been doing it religiously since 2001 when I quit being an insider myself and devoted myself full time to managing my personal investments. Needless to say, past good fortune is no guarantee of future success. We may own positions, long or short, in any of these names and are under no obligation to disclose that. We welcome your comments on our analysis.
This blog is solely for educational purposes and the author’s own amusement. Investing with The Insiders Fund is for qualified investors and by Prospectus only. Nothing herein should be construed otherwise. THE INSIDERS FUND invests in companies at or near prices that management has been willing to invest significant amounts of their own money in. If you would like to hear more about how you can get involved with the Insiders Fund, please schedule some time on my calendar.
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