We note that the Kura Oncology, Inc. (NASDAQ:KURA) Chief Legal Officer & Corporate Secretary, Teresa Bair, recently sold US$95k worth of stock for US$8.46 per share. On the bright side, that's just a small sale and only reduced their holding by 9.0%.

Kura Oncology Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

In the last twelve months, the biggest single purchase by an insider was when Chairman Troy Wilson bought US$410k worth of shares at a price of US$8.20 per share. That means that even when the share price was higher than US$8.04 (the recent price), an insider wanted to purchase shares. Their view may have changed since then, but at least it shows they felt optimistic at the time. In our view, the price an insider pays for shares is very important. It is encouraging to see an insider paid above the current price for shares, as it suggests they saw value, even at higher levels. The only individual insider to buy over the last year was Troy Wilson. Notably Troy Wilson was also the biggest seller.

All up, insiders sold more shares in Kura Oncology than they bought, over the last year. The average sell price was around US$9.46. It is certainly not great to see that insiders have sold shares in the company. However, we do note that the average sale price was significantly higher than the current share price (which is US$8.04). You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!

I will like Kura Oncology better if I see some big insider buys.

Does Kura Oncology Boast High Insider Ownership?

I like to look at how many shares insiders own in a company, to help inform my view of how aligned they are with insiders. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. Insiders own 1.6% of Kura Oncology shares, worth about US$11m. We've certainly seen higher levels of insider ownership elsewhere, but these holdings are enough to suggest alignment between insiders and the other shareholders.

So What Do The Kura Oncology Insider Transactions Indicate?

Insiders sold Kura Oncology shares recently, but they didn't buy any. Zooming out, the longer term picture doesn't give us much comfort. Insiders own shares, but we're still pretty cautious, given the history of sales. We're in no rush to buy! So while it's helpful to know what insiders are doing in terms of buying or selling, it's also helpful to know the risks that a particular company is facing.

But note: Kura Oncology may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with high ROE 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.