Anyone interested in Ichor Holdings, Ltd. (NASDAQ:ICHR) should probably be aware that the Independent Director, Marc Haugen, recently divested US$404k worth of shares in the company, at an average price of US$75.63 each. The eyebrow raising move amounted to a reduction of 33% in their holding.

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Ichor Holdings

The Chief Operating Officer, Bruce Ragsdale, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$1.1m worth of shares at a price of US$49.66 each. So it's clear an insider wanted to take some cash off the table, even below the current price of US$73.27. 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. However, while insider selling is sometimes discouraging, it's only a weak signal. It is worth noting that this sale was only 37% of Bruce Ragsdale's holding.

Happily, we note that in the last year insiders paid US$820k for 51.00k shares. But insiders sold 71.69k shares worth US$3.6m. Over the last year we saw more insider selling of Ichor Holdings shares, than buying. 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!

I will like Ichor Holdings better if I see some big insider buys.

Insider Ownership Of Ichor Holdings

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. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. Ichor Holdings insiders own about US$58m worth of shares. That equates to 2.3% of the company. While this is a strong but not outstanding level of insider ownership, it's enough to indicate some alignment between management and smaller shareholders.

So What Do The Ichor Holdings 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. While insiders do own shares, they don't own a heap, and they have been selling. So we'd only buy after careful consideration. 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 2 warning signs with Ichor Holdings and understanding these should be part of your investment process.

Of course Ichor Holdings 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.