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Despite Design Therapeutics' Pullback, Insiders Still Gained US$39k

Simply Wall St ·  Jan 9 10:00

Insiders who bought Design Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:DSGN) in the last 12 months may probably not pay attention to the stock's recent 18% drop. Even after accounting for the recent loss, the US$104.6k worth of stock purchased by them is now worth US$143.4k or in other words, their investment continues to give good returns.

While insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing, we do think it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing.

Design Therapeutics Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by Independent Director John Schmid for US$100k worth of shares, at about US$3.74 per share. We do like to see buying, but this purchase was made at well below the current price of US$5.08. While it does suggest insiders consider the stock undervalued at lower prices, this transaction doesn't tell us much about what they think of current prices.

Over the last year, we can see that insiders have bought 28.27k shares worth US$105k. On the other hand they divested 3.81k shares, for US$24k. In the last twelve months there was more buying than selling by Design Therapeutics insiders. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

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NasdaqGS:DSGN Insider Trading Volume January 9th 2025

Design Therapeutics is not the only stock that insiders are buying. For those who like to find small cap companies at attractive valuations, this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

Insiders At Design Therapeutics Have Sold Stock Recently

Over the last three months, we've seen a bit of insider selling at Design Therapeutics. Independent Director Deepa Prasad only netted US$24k selling shares, in that period. Neither the lack of buying nor the presence of selling is heartening. But the amount sold isn't enough for us to put any weight on it.

Does Design Therapeutics Boast High Insider Ownership?

Another way to test the alignment between the leaders of a company and other shareholders is to look at how many shares they own. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. It appears that Design Therapeutics insiders own 16% of the company, worth about US$52m. 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 Design Therapeutics Insider Transactions Indicate?

While there has not been any insider buying in the last three months, there has been selling. However, the sales are not big enough to concern us at all. However, our analysis of transactions over the last year is heartening. Insiders own shares in Design Therapeutics and we see no evidence to suggest they are worried about the future. While it's good to be aware of 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. At Simply Wall St, we've found that Design Therapeutics has 4 warning signs (2 are potentially serious!) that deserve your attention before going any further with your analysis.

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.

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