Some Paylocity Holding Corporation (NASDAQ:PCTY) shareholders may be a little concerned to see that the Independent Director, Jeffrey Diehl, recently sold a substantial US$5.5m worth of stock at a price of US$210 per share. Probably the most concerning element of the whole transaction is that the disposal amounted to 100% of their entire holding.

Paylocity Holding Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Notably, that recent sale by Jeffrey Diehl is the biggest insider sale of Paylocity Holding shares that we've seen in the last year. That means that an insider was selling shares at around the current price of US$208. While insider selling is a negative, to us, it is more negative if the shares are sold 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).

In the last year Paylocity Holding insiders didn't buy any company stock. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!

I will like Paylocity Holding better if I see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out this free list of undervalued and small cap stocks with considerable, recent, insider buying.

Insider Ownership Of Paylocity Holding

Another way to test the alignment between the leaders of a company and other shareholders is to look at how many shares they own. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. Paylocity Holding insiders own 20% of the company, currently worth about US$2.4b 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 Paylocity Holding Tell Us?

Insiders sold Paylocity Holding shares recently, but they didn't buy any. And even if we look at the last year, we didn't see any purchases. On the plus side, Paylocity Holding makes money, and is growing profits. It is good to see high insider ownership, but the insider selling leaves us cautious. So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. At Simply Wall St, we found 1 warning sign for Paylocity Holding that deserve your attention before buying any shares.

But note: Paylocity Holding 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.