Over the last year, a good number of insiders have significantly increased their holdings in Standard Bank Group Limited (JSE:SBK). This is encouraging because it indicates that insiders are more optimistic about the company's prospects.

While we would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing, logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares.

View our latest analysis for Standard Bank Group

Standard Bank Group Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

In the last twelve months, the biggest single purchase by an insider was when Group CEO & Executive Director Simpiwe Tshabalala bought R20m worth of shares at a price of R185 per share. That means that an insider was happy to buy shares at above the current price of R179. 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. To us, it's very important to consider the price insiders pay for shares. It is generally more encouraging if they paid above the current price, as it suggests they saw value, even at higher levels.

Happily, we note that in the last year insiders paid R51m for 272.72k shares. But insiders sold 121.80k shares worth R24m. In total, Standard Bank Group insiders bought more than they sold over the last year. You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last 12 months, below. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!

Standard Bank Group is not the only stock that insiders are buying. For those who like to find winning investments this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

Insiders At Standard Bank Group Have Bought Stock Recently

There has been significantly more insider buying, than selling, at Standard Bank Group, over the last three months. In fact, four insiders bought R50m worth of shares. On the other hand, Chief Finance & Value Management Officer Arno Daehnke netted R149k by selling. Insiders have spent more buying shares than they have selling, so on balance we think they are are probably optimistic.

Insider Ownership Of Standard Bank Group

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. Insiders own 0.1% of Standard Bank Group shares, worth about R417m. We've certainly seen higher levels of insider ownership elsewhere, but these holdings are enough to suggest alignment between insiders and the other shareholders.

So What Do The Standard Bank Group Insider Transactions Indicate?

It's certainly positive to see the recent insider purchases. And an analysis of the transactions over the last year also gives us confidence. Once you factor in the high insider ownership, it certainly seems like insiders are positive about Standard Bank Group. Looks promising! While we like knowing what's going on with the insider's ownership and transactions, we make sure to also consider what risks are facing a stock before making any investment decision. While conducting our analysis, we found that Standard Bank Group has 1 warning sign and it would be unwise to ignore it.

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies.

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.