Those following along with NBT Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ:NBTB) will no doubt be intrigued by the recent purchase of shares by Timothy Delaney, Independent Director of the company, who spent a stonking US$977k on stock at an average price of US$42.97. Not only is that a big swing, but it increased their holding size by 45%, which is definitely great to see.

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At NBT Bancorp

Notably, that recent purchase by Timothy Delaney is the biggest insider purchase of NBT Bancorp shares that we've seen in the last year. That implies that an insider found the current price of US$44.43 per share to be enticing. While their view may have changed since the purchase was made, this does at least suggest they have had confidence in the company's future. We do always like to see insider buying, but it is worth noting if those purchases were made at well below today's share price, as the discount to value may have narrowed with the rising price. The good news for NBT Bancorp share holders is that insiders were buying at near the current price.

In the last twelve months insiders purchased 42.90k shares for US$1.8m. But they sold 32.47k shares for US$1.4m. Overall, NBT Bancorp insiders were net buyers during the last year. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

There are plenty of other companies that have insiders buying up shares. You probably do not want to miss this free list of undervalued small cap companies that insiders are buying.

Insider Ownership Of NBT Bancorp

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 NBT Bancorp insiders own 2.6% of the company, worth about US$59m. While this is a strong but not outstanding level of insider ownership, it's enough to indicate some alignment between management and smaller shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At NBT Bancorp Tell Us?

It's certainly positive to see the recent insider purchase. And the longer term insider transactions also give us confidence. Given that insiders also own a fair bit of NBT Bancorp we think they are probably pretty confident of a bright future. Of course, the future is what matters most.

Of course NBT Bancorp may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of high quality 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.