Did Kearny Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:KRNY) Insiders Buy Up More Shares?

It is not uncommon to see companies perform well in the years after insiders buy shares. Unfortunately, there are also plenty of examples of share prices declining precipitously after insiders have sold shares. So before you buy or sell Kearny Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:KRNY), you may well want to know whether insiders have been buying or selling.

Do Insider Transactions Matter?

It is perfectly legal for company insiders, including board members, to buy and sell stock in a company. However, such insiders must disclose their trading activities, and not trade on inside information.

We would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing. But it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing. As Peter Lynch said, 'insiders might sell their shares for any number of reasons, but they buy them for only one: they think the price will rise'.

View our latest analysis for Kearny Financial

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Kearny Financial

The Independent Director John McGovern made the biggest insider purchase in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$128k worth of shares at a price of US$8.02 each. That means that an insider was happy to buy shares at above the current price of US$7.95. 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 always take careful note of the price insiders pay when purchasing shares. 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.

In the last twelve months insiders purchased 46.30k shares for US$416k. But they sold 27.32k shares for US$381k. Overall, Kearny Financial insiders were net buyers during the last year. They paid about US$8.98 on average. These transactions suggest that insiders have considered the current price attractive. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

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.

Insiders at Kearny Financial Have Bought Stock Recently

It's good to see that Kearny Financial insiders have made notable investments in the company's shares. Not only was there no selling that we can see, but they collectively bought US$205k worth of shares. This is a positive in our book as it implies some confidence.

Insider Ownership

Looking at the total insider shareholdings in a company can help to inform your view of whether they are well aligned with common shareholders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. Kearny Financial insiders own about US$24m worth of shares. That equates to 3.5% of the company. We've certainly seen higher levels of insider ownership elsewhere, but these holdings are enough to suggest alignment between insiders and the other shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Kearny Financial Tell Us?

It's certainly positive to see the recent insider purchases. And the longer term insider transactions also give us confidence. Insiders likely see value in Kearny Financial shares, given these transactions (along with notable insider ownership of the company). In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Kearny Financial. While conducting our analysis, we found that Kearny Financial has 2 warning signs and it would be unwise to ignore these.

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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