Trade Alert: The Independent Non-Executive Chairman Of Darktrace plc (LON:DARK), Gordon Hurst, Has Just Spent US$149k Buying 4.0% More Shares

Potential Darktrace plc (LON:DARK) shareholders may wish to note that the Independent Non-Executive Chairman, Gordon Hurst, recently bought UK£149k worth of stock, paying UK£5.96 for each share. Although the purchase only increased their holding by 4.0%, it is still a solid purchase in our view.

See our latest analysis for Darktrace

Darktrace Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

Notably, that recent purchase by Gordon Hurst is the biggest insider purchase of Darktrace shares that we've seen in the last year. So it's clear an insider wanted to buy, at around the current price, which is UK£6.00. That means they have been optimistic about the company in the past, though they may have changed their mind. 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 Darktrace share holders is that an insider was buying at near the current price. Gordon Hurst was the only individual insider to buy during 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!

insider-trading-volume

Darktrace is not the only stock insiders are buying. So take a peek at this free list of growing companies with insider buying.

Insider Ownership

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. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. It's great to see that Darktrace insiders own 29% of the company, worth about UK£1.1b. 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 Darktrace Insider Transactions Indicate?

It's certainly positive to see the recent insider purchase. And an analysis of the transactions over the last year also gives us confidence. However, we note that the company didn't make a profit over the last twelve months, which makes us cautious. Once you factor in the high insider ownership, it certainly seems like insiders are positive about Darktrace. That's what I like to see! 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. At Simply Wall St, we found 2 warning signs for Darktrace that deserve your attention before buying any shares.

But note: Darktrace 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, but not derivative transactions.

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.

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