Some Synovus Financial Corp. (NYSE:SNV) shareholders may be a little concerned to see that the Executive VP & Chief Wholesale Banking Officer, Kevin Howard, recently sold a substantial US$914k worth of stock at a price of US$58.02 per share. That's a big disposal, and it decreased their holding size by 23%, which is notable but not too bad.

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Synovus Financial

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by Executive VP & CFO Andrew Gregory for US$1.1m worth of shares, at about US$40.03 per share. Although we like to see insider buying, we note that this large purchase was at significantly below the recent price of US$56.00. Because it occurred at a lower valuation, it doesn't tell us much about whether insiders might find today's price attractive.

Happily, we note that in the last year insiders paid US$2.6m for 61.84k shares. But they sold 92.57k shares for US$3.8m. In total, Synovus Financial insiders sold more 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!

If you are like me, then you will not want to miss this free list of small cap stocks that are not only being bought by insiders but also have attractive valuations.

Insider Ownership

Looking at the total insider shareholdings in a company can help to inform your view of whether they are well aligned with common shareholders. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. It appears that Synovus Financial insiders own 0.6% of the company, worth about US$45m. 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 Does This Data Suggest About Synovus Financial Insiders?

Unfortunately, there has been more insider selling of Synovus Financial stock, than buying, in the last three months. Zooming out, the longer term picture doesn't give us much comfort. Insider ownership isn't particularly high, so this analysis makes us cautious about the company. We're in no rush to buy! 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. Case in point: We've spotted 2 warning signs for Synovus Financial you should be aware of.

But note: Synovus Financial 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.