Anyone interested in Artesian Resources Corporation (NASDAQ:ARTN.A) should probably be aware that the Director, Dian Taylor, recently divested US$140k worth of shares in the company, at an average price of US$35.00 each. However, the silver lining is that the sale only reduced their total holding by 3.8%, so we're hesitant to read anything much into it, on its own.

Artesian Resources Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

In fact, the recent sale by Director Dian Taylor was not their only sale of Artesian Resources shares this year. They previously made an even bigger sale of -US$142k worth of shares at a price of US$31.97 per share. So it's clear an insider wanted to take some cash off the table, even below the current price of US$35.52. As a general rule we consider it to be discouraging when insiders are selling below the current price, because it suggests they were happy with a lower 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. It is worth noting that this sale was only 2.9% of Dian Taylor's holding.

Artesian Resources 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 click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

I will like Artesian Resources better if I see some big insider buys.

Insider Ownership Of Artesian Resources

For a common shareholder, it is worth checking how many shares are held by company insiders. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. Artesian Resources insiders own about US$35m worth of shares. That equates to 9.6% 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.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Artesian Resources Tell Us?

An insider hasn't bought Artesian Resources stock in the last three months, but there was some selling. And there weren't any purchases to give us comfort, over the last year. But since Artesian Resources is profitable and growing, we're not too worried by this. While insiders do own shares, they don't own a heap, and they have been selling. We'd practice some caution before buying! So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company.

But note: Artesian Resources 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.