Over the last year, a good number of insiders have significantly increased their holdings in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC). 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, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.

Norfolk Southern Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by Independent Chairman Claude Mongeau for US$1.2m worth of shares, at about US$221 per share. Even though the purchase was made at a significantly lower price than the recent price (US$249), we still think insider buying is a positive. Because it occurred at a lower valuation, it doesn't tell us much about whether insiders might find today's price attractive.

Happily, we note that in the last year insiders paid US$4.5m for 20.01k shares. But insiders sold 4.54k shares worth US$1.0m. In total, Norfolk Southern 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. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

Norfolk Southern is not the only stock insiders are buying. So take a peek at this free list of under-the-radar companies with insider buying.

Insiders At Norfolk Southern Have Bought Stock Recently

Over the last three months, we've seen significantly more insider buying, than insider selling, at Norfolk Southern. In total, two insiders bought US$739k worth of shares in that time. But insider Nabanita Nag sold shares worth US$89k. Insiders have spent more buying shares than they have selling, so on balance we think they are are probably optimistic.

Insider Ownership

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. Norfolk Southern insiders own about US$64m worth of shares. That equates to 0.1% of the company. 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 Norfolk Southern 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. When combined with notable insider ownership, these factors suggest Norfolk Southern insiders are well aligned, and that they may think the share price is too low. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Norfolk Southern. To that end, you should learn about the 3 warning signs we've spotted with Norfolk Southern (including 1 which doesn't sit too well with us).

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 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.