Insiders were net sellers of CVS Health Corporation's (NYSE:CVS ) stock during the past year. That is, insiders sold more stock than they bought.

While we would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing, we do think it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing.

CVS Health Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider sale was by the Executive VP, Prem Shah, for US$2.3m worth of shares, at about US$76.95 per share. While insider selling is a negative, to us, it is more negative if the shares are sold at a lower price. The silver lining is that this sell-down took place above the latest price (US$61.54). So it may not shed much light on insider confidence at current levels. The only individual insider seller over the last year was Prem Shah.

In the last twelve months insiders purchased 12.18k shares for US$695k. But they sold 29.47k shares for US$2.3m. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!

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

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. CVS Health insiders own about US$120m worth of shares (which is 0.2% of the company). This kind of significant ownership by insiders does generally increase the chance that the company is run in the interest of all shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At CVS Health Tell Us?

It doesn't really mean much that no insider has traded CVS Health shares in the last quarter. It's heartening that insiders own plenty of stock, but we'd like to see more insider buying, since the last year of CVS Health insider transactions don't fill us with confidence. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing CVS Health. To assist with this, we've discovered 1 warning sign that you should run your eye over to get a better picture of CVS Health.

But note: CVS Health may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with high ROE 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.

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.