Insiders were net sellers of Warrior Met Coal, Inc.'s (NYSE:HCC ) stock during the past year. That is, insiders sold more stock than they bought.

Although we don't think shareholders should simply follow insider transactions, we do think it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing.

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Warrior Met Coal

In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the Director, Stephen Williams, sold US$3.6m worth of shares at a price of US$45.60 per share. So it's clear an insider wanted to take some cash off the table, even below the current price of US$57.94. 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. Please do note, however, that sellers may have a variety of reasons for selling, so we don't know for sure what they think of the stock price. This single sale was 79% of Stephen Williams's stake. The only individual insider seller over the last year was Stephen Williams.

You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

For those who like to find hidden gems this free list of small cap companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

Does Warrior Met Coal Boast High Insider Ownership?

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. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. Warrior Met Coal insiders own about US$53m worth of shares. That equates to 1.7% of the company. 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 Warrior Met Coal Tell Us?

There haven't been any insider transactions in the last three months -- that doesn't mean much. Still, the insider transactions at Warrior Met Coal in the last 12 months are not very heartening. But it's good to see that insiders own shares in the company. So while it's helpful to know what insiders are doing in terms of buying or selling, it's also helpful to know the risks that a particular company is facing. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for Warrior Met Coal you should know about.

Of course Warrior Met Coal may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of high quality 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.