Potential Severn Trent Plc (LON:SVT) shareholders may wish to note that the CEO & Executive Director, Olivia Garfield, recently bought UK£320k worth of stock, paying UK£25.42 for each share. Although the purchase only increased their holding by 7.0%, it is still a solid purchase in our view.

Check out our latest analysis for Severn Trent

Severn Trent Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

In fact, the recent purchase by Olivia Garfield was the biggest purchase of Severn Trent shares made by an insider individual in the last twelve months, according to our records. That means that an insider was happy to buy shares at above the current price of UK£24.72. 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. In our view, the price an insider pays for shares is very important. Generally speaking, it catches our eye when insiders have purchased shares at above current prices, as it suggests they believed the shares were worth buying, even at a higher price.

Happily, we note that in the last year insiders paid UK£532k for 20.95k shares. But insiders sold 21945 shares worth UK£527k. Overall, Severn Trent insiders were net buyers during the last year. You can see the insider transactions (by 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 growing companies that insiders are buying.

Insider Ownership of Severn Trent

Another way to test the alignment between the leaders of a company and other shareholders is to look at how many shares they own. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. Insiders own 0.2% of Severn Trent shares, worth about UK£9.6m. 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 Severn Trent Insiders?

It's certainly positive to see the recent insider purchases. We also take confidence from the longer term picture of insider transactions. We would certainly prefer see higher levels of insider ownership but analysis of the insider transactions suggests that Severn Trent insiders are expecting a bright future. While we like knowing 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. For instance, we've identified 3 warning signs for Severn Trent (1 is potentially serious) you should be aware of.

If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity 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, but not derivative transactions.

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. 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.

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