Even though Editas Medicine, Inc. (NASDAQ:EDIT) has fallen by 19% over the past week , insiders who sold US$1.2m worth of stock over the past year have had less luck. Insiders might have been better off holding onto their shares, given that the average selling price of US$7.97 is still below the current share price.

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.

Editas Medicine Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the President, Gilmore O'Neill, sold US$733k worth of shares at a price of US$9.42 per share. We generally don't like to see insider selling, but the lower the sale price, the more it concerns us. The silver lining is that this sell-down took place above the latest price (US$2.66). So it may not shed much light on insider confidence at current levels.

All up, insiders sold more shares in Editas Medicine than they bought, over the last year. 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 hidden gems this free list of small cap companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

Have Editas Medicine Insiders Traded Recently?

The last three months saw some Editas Medicine insider selling. Insiders sold just US$7.1k worth of shares in that time. Neither the lack of buying nor the presence of selling is heartening. But the volume sold is so low that it really doesn't bother us.

Insider Ownership

For a common shareholder, it is worth checking how many shares are held by company insiders. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. From what we can see in our data, insiders own only about US$862k worth of Editas Medicine shares. It's always possible we are missing something but from our data, it looks like insider ownership is minimal.

So What Do The Editas Medicine 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. Recent insider selling makes us a little nervous, in light of the broader picture of Editas Medicine insider transactions. And usually insiders own more stock in the company, according to our data. 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. To that end, you should learn about the 2 warning signs we've spotted with Editas Medicine (including 1 which is a bit concerning).

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.