We'd be surprised if Ladder Capital Corp (NYSE:LADR) shareholders haven't noticed that the Founder & Head of Asset Management, Robert Perelman, recently sold US$359k worth of stock at US$10.25 per share. On the bright side, that sale was only 7.5% of their holding, so we doubt it's very meaningful, on its own.

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Ladder Capital

The Independent Director, Mark Alexander, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$1.0m worth of shares at a price of US$11.12 each. That means that an insider was selling shares at around the current price of US$10.19. While insider selling is a negative, to us, it is more negative if the shares are sold at a lower price. In this case, the big sale took place at around the current price, so it's not too bad (but it's still not a positive).

All up, insiders sold more shares in Ladder Capital than they bought, over the last year. 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!

If you are like me, then you will not want to miss this free list of small cap stocks that are not only being bought by insiders but also have attractive valuations.

Insider Ownership Of Ladder Capital

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. It's great to see that Ladder Capital insiders own 13% of the company, worth about US$163m. This kind of significant ownership by insiders does generally increase the chance that the company is run in the interest of all shareholders.

So What Do The Ladder Capital Insider Transactions Indicate?

An insider hasn't bought Ladder Capital stock in the last three months, but there was some selling. Zooming out, the longer term picture doesn't give us much comfort. It is good to see high insider ownership, but the insider selling leaves us cautious. While it's good to be aware of what's going on with the insider's ownership and transactions, we make sure to also consider what risks are facing a stock before making any investment decision. To help with this, we've discovered 3 warning signs (2 can't be ignored!) that you ought to be aware of before buying any shares in Ladder Capital.

But note: Ladder Capital 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.