We wouldn't blame New Oriental Education & Technology Group Inc. (NYSE:EDU) shareholders if they were a little worried about the fact that Chenggang Zhou, the CEO & Director recently netted about US$4.0m selling shares at an average price of US$56.73. That's a big disposal, and it decreased their holding size by 14%, which is notable but not too bad.

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At New Oriental Education & Technology Group

In fact, the recent sale by Chenggang Zhou was the biggest sale of New Oriental Education & Technology Group shares made by an insider individual in the last twelve months, according to our records. That means that an insider was selling shares at around the current price of US$52.54. 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 New Oriental Education & Technology Group insiders didn't buy any company stock. 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!

For those who like to find hidden gems this free list of small cap companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

Insider Ownership

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. New Oriental Education & Technology Group insiders own 13% of the company, currently worth about US$1.1b 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 New Oriental Education & Technology Group Tell Us?

Insiders haven't bought New Oriental Education & Technology Group stock in the last three months, but there was some selling. Looking to the last twelve months, our data doesn't show any insider buying. But it is good to see that New Oriental Education & Technology Group is growing earnings. It is good to see high insider ownership, but the insider selling leaves us cautious. 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.

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.

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.