Whilst it may not be a huge deal, we thought it was good to see that the Oak Valley Bancorp (NASDAQ:OVLY) Independent Director, Gary Strong, recently bought US$65k worth of stock, for US$32.50 per share. That purchase might not be huge but it did increase their holding by 16%.

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Oak Valley Bancorp

In fact, the recent purchase by Gary Strong was the biggest purchase of Oak Valley Bancorp shares made by an insider individual in the last twelve months, according to our records. That implies that an insider found the current price of US$34.35 per share to be enticing. That means they have been optimistic about the company in the past, though they may have changed their mind. While we always like to see insider buying, it's less meaningful if the purchases were made at much lower prices, as the opportunity they saw may have passed. In this case we're pleased to report that the insider purchases were made at close to current prices.

Over the last year, we can see that insiders have bought 7.74k shares worth US$230k. But insiders sold 375.00 shares worth US$13k. Overall, Oak Valley Bancorp insiders were net buyers during 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!

There are plenty of other companies that have insiders buying up shares. You probably do not want to miss this free list of undervalued small cap companies that insiders are buying.

Insider Ownership Of Oak Valley Bancorp

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. It appears that Oak Valley Bancorp insiders own 14% of the company, worth about US$38m. This level of insider ownership is good but just short of being particularly stand-out. It certainly does suggest a reasonable degree of alignment.

So What Does This Data Suggest About Oak Valley Bancorp Insiders?

The recent insider purchases are heartening. And the longer term insider transactions also give us confidence. Insiders likely see value in Oak Valley Bancorp shares, given these transactions (along with notable insider ownership of the company). I like to dive deeper into how a company has performed in the past. You can find historic revenue and earnings in this detailed graph.

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.