We'd be surprised if Heartland Financial USA, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLF) shareholders haven't noticed that the Independent Director, Jennifer Hopkins, recently sold US$250k worth of stock at US$50.06 per share. That sale was 26% of their holding, so it does make us raise an eyebrow.

Heartland Financial USA Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Notably, that recent sale by Jennifer Hopkins is the biggest insider sale of Heartland Financial USA shares that we've seen in the last year. So we know that an insider sold shares at around the present share price of US$48.83. While we don't usually like to see insider selling, it's more concerning if the sales take place at a lower price. In this case, the big sale took place at around the current price, so it's not too bad (but it's still not a positive).

Over the last year, we can see that insiders have bought 4.68k shares worth US$154k. But they sold 8.85k shares for US$432k. Over the last year we saw more insider selling of Heartland Financial USA shares, than buying. 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!

If you like to buy stocks that insiders are buying, rather than selling, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: Most of them are flying under the radar).

Insider Ownership Of Heartland Financial USA

For a common shareholder, it is worth checking how many shares are held by company 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. Heartland Financial USA insiders own about US$180m worth of shares (which is 8.5% of the company). Most shareholders would be happy to see this sort of insider ownership, since it suggests that management incentives are well aligned with other shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Heartland Financial USA Tell Us?

The insider sales have outweighed the insider buying, at Heartland Financial USA, in the last three months. Zooming out, the longer term picture doesn't give us much comfort. The company boasts high insider ownership, but we're a little hesitant, given the history of share sales. 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. You'd be interested to know, that we found 4 warning signs for Heartland Financial USA and we suggest you have a look.

Of course Heartland Financial USA 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.