Some MSCI Inc. (NYSE:MSCI) shareholders may be a little concerned to see that the General Counsel and Head of Corporate Affairs, Robert Gutowski, recently sold a substantial US$1.0m worth of stock at a price of US$575 per share. That's a big disposal, and it decreased their holding size by 12%, which is notable but not too bad.

MSCI Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

The Chairman & CEO Henry Fernandez made the biggest insider purchase in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$6.1m worth of shares at a price of US$470 each. Even though the purchase was made at a significantly lower price than the recent price (US$581), we still think insider buying is a positive. Because it occurred at a lower valuation, it doesn't tell us much about whether insiders might find today's price attractive.

In the last twelve months insiders purchased 20.50k shares for US$9.5m. But they sold 10.82k shares for US$5.3m. Overall, MSCI insiders were net buyers during 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!

There are always plenty of stocks that insiders are buying. If investing in lesser known companies is your style, you could take a look at this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).

Insider Ownership Of MSCI

Another way to test the alignment between the leaders of a company and other shareholders is to look at how many shares they own. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. MSCI insiders own 3.2% of the company, currently worth about US$1.5b based on the recent share price. I like to see this level of insider ownership, because it increases the chances that management are thinking about the best interests of shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At MSCI Tell Us?

An insider sold stock recently, but they haven't been buying. In contrast, they appear keener if you look at the last twelve months. On top of that, insiders own a significant portion of the company. So we're happy to look past recent trading. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing MSCI. To assist with this, we've discovered 2 warning signs that you should run your eye over to get a better picture of MSCI.

But note: MSCI 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.

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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.