In the last year, many PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) insiders sold a substantial stake in the company which may have sparked shareholders’ attention. Knowing whether insiders are buying is usually more helpful when evaluating insider transactions, as insider selling can have various explanations. However, shareholders should take a deeper look if several insiders are selling stock over a specific time period.
While insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.
View our latest analysis for PepsiCo
In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the insider, Eugene Willemsen, sold US$1.3m worth of shares at a price of US$170 per share. While we don’t usually like to see insider selling, it’s more concerning if the sales take place at a lower price. The good news is that this large sale was at well above current price of US$152. So it may not tell us anything about how insiders feel about the current share price.
Insiders in PepsiCo didn’t buy any shares in the last year. 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!
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).
I like to look at how many shares insiders own in a company, to help inform my view of how aligned they are with insiders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. It’s great to see that PepsiCo insiders own 0.1% of the company, worth about US$284m. I like to see this level of insider ownership, because it increases the chances that management are thinking about the best interests of shareholders.
The fact that there have been no PepsiCo insider transactions recently certainly doesn’t bother us. While we feel good about high insider ownership of PepsiCo, we can’t say the same about the selling of shares. So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it’s also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. Case in point: We’ve spotted 2 warning signs for PepsiCo you should be aware of.
If you would prefer to check out another company — one with potentially superior financials — then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity 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.