Some Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARWR) shareholders may be a little concerned to see that the Independent Director, Michael Perry, recently sold a substantial US$1.0m worth of stock at a price of US$87.30 per share. That sale reduced their total holding by 10% which is hardly insignificant, but far from the worst we've seen.

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals

In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the Chairman, Christopher Anzalone, sold US$12m worth of shares at a price of US$69.96 per share. That means that an insider was selling shares at slightly below the current price (US$87.11). When an insider sells below the current price, it suggests that they considered that lower price to be fair. That makes us wonder what they think of the (higher) recent valuation. Please do note, however, that sellers may have a variety of reasons for selling, so we don't know for sure what they think of the stock price. This single sale was just 4.5% of Christopher Anzalone's stake.

In the last year Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals 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 want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

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).

Insider Ownership Of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals

Looking at the total insider shareholdings in a company can help to inform your view of whether they are well aligned with common shareholders. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. It's great to see that Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals insiders own 3.3% of the company, worth about US$408m. This kind of significant ownership by insiders does generally increase the chance that the company is run in the interest of all shareholders.

So What Do The Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals Insider Transactions Indicate?

Insiders haven't bought Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals stock in the last three months, but there was some selling. And even if we look at the last year, we didn't see any purchases. While insiders do own a lot of shares in the company (which is good), our analysis of their transactions doesn't make us feel confident about the company. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals.

Of course Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of high quality 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.