Dashan Education Holdings Limited's (HKG:9986) stock rose 10% last week, but insiders who sold CN¥28m worth of stock over the last year are probably in a more advantageous position. Selling at an average price of CN¥2.21, which is higher than the current price might have been the right call as holding on to stock would have meant their investment would be worth less now than it was at the time of sale.

Although we don't think shareholders should simply follow insider transactions, logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares.

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The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Dashan Education Holdings

The insider, Xi Wang, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for HK$9.4m worth of shares at a price of HK$2.28 each. While we don't usually like to see insider selling, it's more concerning if the sales take place at a lower price. The silver lining is that this sell-down took place above the latest price (HK$1.31). So it may not shed much light on insider confidence at current levels. Notably Xi Wang was also the biggest buyer, having purchased HK$4.2m worth of shares.

Happily, we note that in the last year insiders paid HK$4.2m for 1.70m shares. On the other hand they divested 12.72m shares, for HK$28m. All up, insiders sold more shares in Dashan Education Holdings than they bought, over the last year. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

View our latest analysis for Dashan Education Holdings

I will like Dashan Education Holdings 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.

Insiders At Dashan Education Holdings Have Sold Stock Recently

The last three months saw significant insider selling at Dashan Education Holdings. Specifically, insider Xi Wang ditched HK$1.2m worth of shares in that time, and we didn't record any purchases whatsoever. In light of this it's hard to argue that all the insiders think that the shares are a bargain.

Does Dashan Education Holdings Boast High Insider Ownership?

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. Dashan Education Holdings insiders own 60% of the company, currently worth about HK$631m 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.

So What Do The Dashan Education Holdings Insider Transactions Indicate?

An insider hasn't bought Dashan Education Holdings stock in the last three months, but there was some selling. Zooming out, the longer term picture doesn't give us much comfort. The company boasts high insider ownership, but we're a little hesitant, given the history of share sales. While it's good to be aware of what's going on with the insider's ownership and transactions, we make sure to also consider what risks are facing a stock before making any investment decision. Case in point: We've spotted 2 warning signs for Dashan Education Holdings you should be aware of, and 1 of these doesn't sit too well with us.

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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