Although Surf Air Mobility Inc. (NYSE:SRFM) shareholders have enjoyed a great week with the stock up 17%, insiders who sold stock over the past year haven't fared as well. Had they waited, they might have been able to sell their stock at much higher prices and thereby received a better value on their investment.

Although we don't think shareholders should simply follow insider transactions, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.

Surf Air Mobility Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the Co-Founder & Director, Sudhin Shahani, sold US$184k worth of shares at a price of US$2.43 per share. That means that even when the share price was below the current price of US$5.79, an insider wanted to cash in some shares. 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. While insider selling is not a positive sign, we can't be sure if it does mean insiders think the shares are fully valued, so it's only a weak sign. This single sale was just 12% of Sudhin Shahani's stake. Notably Sudhin Shahani was also the biggest buyer, having purchased US$59k worth of shares.

Over the last year we saw more insider selling of Surf Air Mobility shares, than buying. 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 Surf Air Mobility better if I see some big insider buys.

Insiders At Surf Air Mobility Have Sold Stock Recently

The last quarter saw substantial insider selling of Surf Air Mobility shares. In total, insiders dumped US$209k worth of shares in that time, and we didn't record any purchases whatsoever. In light of this it's hard to argue that all the insiders think that the shares are a bargain.

Insider Ownership Of Surf Air Mobility

Looking at the total insider shareholdings in a company can help to inform your view of whether they are well aligned with common shareholders. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. Insiders own 9.3% of Surf Air Mobility shares, worth about US$18m. 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 Surf Air Mobility Insider Transactions Indicate?

Insiders sold stock recently, but they haven't been buying. And our longer term analysis of insider transactions didn't bring confidence, either. Insider ownership isn't particularly high, so this analysis makes us cautious about the company. We're in no rush to buy! In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Surf Air Mobility.

But note: Surf Air Mobility 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.