A number of insiders bought Braemar Shipping Services Plc (LON:BMS) stock last year, which is great news for shareholders

It is usually uneventful when a single insider buys stock. However, When quite a few insiders buy shares, as it happened in Braemar Shipping Services Plc's (LON:BMS) case, it's fantastic news for shareholders.

While we would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.

View our latest analysis for Braemar Shipping Services

Braemar Shipping Services Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by Group CEO & Executive Director James Christopher Gundy for UK£51k worth of shares, at about UK£2.54 per share. So it's clear an insider wanted to buy, at around the current price, which is UK£2.78. 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 do always like to see insider buying, but it is worth noting if those purchases were made at well below today's share price, as the discount to value may have narrowed with the rising price. In this case we're pleased to report that the insider purchases were made at close to current prices.

Over the last year, we can see that insiders have bought 61.26k shares worth UK£142k. But they sold 1.50k shares for UK£4.2k. In the last twelve months there was more buying than selling by Braemar Shipping Services insiders. 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!

There are plenty of other companies that have insiders buying up shares. You probably do not want to miss this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying.

Insider Ownership of Braemar Shipping Services

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 appears that Braemar Shipping Services insiders own 14% of the company, worth about UK£13m. While this is a strong but not outstanding level of insider ownership, it's enough to indicate some alignment between management and smaller shareholders.

So What Does This Data Suggest About Braemar Shipping Services Insiders?

The fact that there have been no Braemar Shipping Services insider transactions recently certainly doesn't bother us. However, our analysis of transactions over the last year is heartening. Insiders do have a stake in Braemar Shipping Services and their transactions don't cause us concern. 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. For instance, we've identified 3 warning signs for Braemar Shipping Services (1 is significant) you should be aware of.

But note: Braemar Shipping Services 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, but not derivative transactions.

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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.