We'd be surprised if Ranger Energy Services, Inc. (NYSE:RNGR) shareholders haven't noticed that the Executive Vice President of Well Services, J. Hooker, recently sold US$193k worth of stock at US$16.63 per share. That sale was 12% of their holding, so it does make us raise an eyebrow.

Ranger Energy Services Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Notably, that recent sale by J. Hooker is the biggest insider sale of Ranger Energy Services shares that we've seen in the last year. That means that an insider was selling shares at slightly below the current price (US$17.29). 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. 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 12% of J. Hooker's holding.

J. Hooker ditched 15.18k shares over the year. The average price per share was US$16.60. You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last 12 months, below. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

I will like Ranger Energy Services better if I see some big insider buys.

Does Ranger Energy Services 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. Ranger Energy Services insiders own about US$15m worth of shares. That equates to 3.8% of the company. 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 Does This Data Suggest About Ranger Energy Services Insiders?

An insider sold stock recently, but they haven't been buying. And there weren't any purchases to give us comfort, over the last year. Insider ownership isn't particularly high, so this analysis makes us cautious about the company. So we'd only buy after careful consideration. 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.

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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.