Some Oceaneering International, Inc. (NYSE:OII) shareholders may be a little concerned to see that the Senior VP & Chief Commercial Officer, Earl Childress, recently sold a substantial US$593k worth of stock at a price of US$46.71 per share. That sale reduced their total holding by 36% which is hardly insignificant, but far from the worst we've seen.

Oceaneering International Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

The Senior Vice President of Subsea Robotics, Martin McDonald, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$2.7m worth of shares at a price of US$38.49 each. That means that an insider was selling shares at slightly below the current price (US$48.72). We generally consider it a negative if insiders have been selling, especially if they did so below the current price, because it implies that they considered a lower price to be reasonable. However, while insider selling is sometimes discouraging, it's only a weak signal. We note that the biggest single sale was 59% of Martin McDonald's holding.

In the last year Oceaneering International insiders didn't buy any company stock. 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!

I will like Oceaneering International better if I see some big insider buys.

Does Oceaneering International Boast High Insider Ownership?

For a common shareholder, it is worth checking how many shares are held by company insiders. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. It appears that Oceaneering International insiders own 1.5% of the company, worth about US$74m. 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 Does This Data Suggest About Oceaneering International Insiders?

Insiders sold Oceaneering International shares recently, but they didn't buy any. And even if we look at the last year, we didn't see any purchases. On the plus side, Oceaneering International makes money, and is growing profits. While insiders do own shares, they don't own a heap, and they have been selling. We're in no rush to buy! In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Oceaneering International.

But note: Oceaneering International 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.