Potential Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. (NYSE:RGR) shareholders may wish to note that the Independent Lead Vice-Chairman of the Board, Phillip Widman, recently bought US$190k worth of stock, paying US$38.00 for each share. That's a very solid buy in our book, and increased their holding by a noteworthy 14%.

Sturm Ruger Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the insider, Christopher Killoy, sold US$400k worth of shares at a price of US$40.00 per share. That means that an insider was selling shares at around the current price of US$39.33. While we don't usually like to see insider selling, it's more concerning if the sales take place at a lower price. Given that the sale took place at around current prices, it makes us a little cautious but is hardly a major concern. The only individual insider seller over the last year was Christopher Killoy.

Over the last year, we can see that insiders have bought 6.50k shares worth US$246k. On the other hand they divested 18.58k shares, for US$718k. Christopher Killoy divested 18.58k shares over the last 12 months at an average price of US$38.62. 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 Sturm Ruger

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. It appears that Sturm Ruger insiders own 2.9% of the company, worth about US$18m. This level of insider ownership is good but just short of being particularly stand-out. It certainly does suggest a reasonable degree of alignment.

So What Does This Data Suggest About Sturm Ruger Insiders?

The recent insider purchases are heartening. However, the longer term transactions are not so encouraging. While recent transactions indicate confidence in Sturm Ruger, insiders don't own enough of the company to overcome our cautiousness about the longer term transactions. So they seem pretty well aligned, overall. So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. In terms of investment risks, we've identified 1 warning sign with Sturm Ruger and understanding this should be part of your investment process.

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.