We'd be surprised if Arcus Biosciences, Inc. (NYSE:RCUS) shareholders haven't noticed that the Chief Operating Officer, Jennifer Jarrett, recently sold US$241k worth of stock at US$17.92 per share. The eyebrow raising move amounted to a reduction of 27% in their holding.

Arcus Biosciences Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Notably, that recent sale by Chief Operating Officer Jennifer Jarrett was not the only time they sold Arcus Biosciences shares this year. Earlier in the year, they fetched US$19.35 per share in a -US$243k sale. While we don't usually like to see insider selling, it's more concerning if the sales take place at a lower price. The good news is that this large sale was at well above current price of US$17.24. So it is hard to draw any strong conclusion from it.

Jennifer Jarrett divested 26.01k shares over the last 12 months at an average price of US$18.61. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

For those who like to find winning investments this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

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. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. Arcus Biosciences insiders own about US$39m worth of shares. That equates to 2.4% 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.

So What Do The Arcus Biosciences Insider Transactions Indicate?

An insider sold stock recently, but they haven't been buying. And there weren't any purchases to give us comfort, over the last year. Insider ownership isn't particularly high, so this analysis makes us cautious about the company. So we'd only buy after careful consideration. 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. For example - Arcus Biosciences has 3 warning signs we think you should be aware of.

Of course Arcus Biosciences 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.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.
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.