Some Synaptics Incorporated (NASDAQ:SYNA) shareholders may be a little concerned to see that the Corporate VP & Chief Accounting Officer, Kermit Nolan, recently sold a substantial US$1.1m worth of stock at a price of US$104 per share. That sale reduced their total holding by 28% which is hardly insignificant, but far from the worst we've seen.

Check out our latest analysis for Synaptics

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Synaptics

In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the President, Michael E. Hurlston, sold US$4.0m worth of shares at a price of US$86.51 per share. That means that even when the share price was below the current price of US$106, an insider wanted to cash in some shares. 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. We note that the biggest single sale was only 20% of Michael E. Hurlston's holding.

In the last year Synaptics insiders didn't buy any company stock. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!

I will like Synaptics better if I see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out this free list of growing companies with considerable, recent, insider buying.

Insider Ownership Of Synaptics

Another way to test the alignment between the leaders of a company and other shareholders is to look at how many shares they own. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. Synaptics insiders own about US$56m worth of shares. That equates to 1.4% of the company. This level of insider ownership is good but just short of being particularly stand-out. It certainly does suggest a reasonable degree of alignment.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Synaptics Tell Us?

Insiders sold stock recently, but they haven't been buying. Looking to the last twelve months, our data doesn't show any insider buying. While insiders do own shares, they don't own a heap, and they have been selling. So we'd only buy after careful consideration. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Synaptics. While conducting our analysis, we found that Synaptics has 1 warning sign and it would be unwise to ignore it.

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.