Those following along with Vitesse Energy, Inc. (NYSE:VTS) will no doubt be intrigued by the recent purchase of shares by Joseph Steinberg, Director of the company, who spent a stonking US$1.0m on stock at an average price of US$17.00. There's no denying a buy of that magnitude suggests conviction in a brighter future, although we do note that proportionally it only increased their holding by 2.1%.

Vitesse Energy Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

The Senior Advisor, Brian Cree, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$2.2m worth of shares at a price of US$18.65 each. So what is clear is that an insider saw fit to sell at around the current price of US$17.65. 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 twelve months insiders purchased 89.12k shares for US$1.6m. On the other hand they divested 143.66k shares, for US$2.9m. All up, insiders sold more shares in Vitesse Energy 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 click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

I will like Vitesse Energy better if I see some big insider buys.

Insider Ownership Of Vitesse Energy

For a common shareholder, it is worth checking how many shares are held by company 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. Vitesse Energy insiders own 18% of the company, currently worth about US$137m based on the recent share price. Most shareholders would be happy to see this sort of insider ownership, since it suggests that management incentives are well aligned with other shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Vitesse Energy Tell Us?

Unfortunately, there has been more insider selling of Vitesse Energy stock, than buying, in the last three months. And our longer term analysis of insider transactions didn't bring confidence, either. The company boasts high insider ownership, but we're a little hesitant, given the history of share sales. 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.

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.

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.