Some Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:XENE) shareholders may be a little concerned to see that the Independent Director, Steven Gannon, recently sold a substantial US$641k worth of stock at a price of US$64.06 per share. That diminished their holding by a very significant 84%, which arguably implies a strong desire to reallocate capital.

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Xenon Pharmaceuticals

In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the President, Ian Mortimer, sold US$1.0m worth of shares at a price of US$40.16 per share. So it's clear an insider wanted to take some cash off the table, even below the current price of US$62.35. We generally consider it a negative if insiders have been selling, especially if they did so below the current price, because it implies that they considered a lower price to be reasonable. However, while insider selling is sometimes discouraging, it's only a weak signal. We note that the biggest single sale was only 35% of Ian Mortimer's holding.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals insiders didn't buy any shares 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!

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Insider Ownership Of Xenon 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. Our data indicates that Xenon Pharmaceuticals insiders own about US$8.1m worth of shares (which is 0.1% of the company). We do generally prefer see higher levels of insider ownership.

So What Do The Xenon Pharmaceuticals Insider Transactions Indicate?

An insider hasn't bought Xenon Pharmaceuticals 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. Insiders own relatively few shares in the company, and when you consider the sales, we're not particularly excited about the stock. We'd certainly practice some caution before buying! 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. To help with this, we've discovered 4 warning signs (1 is concerning!) that you ought to be aware of before buying any shares in Xenon Pharmaceuticals.

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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.