Over the past year, many Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) insiders sold a significant stake in the company which may have piqued investors' interest. When analyzing insider transactions, it is usually more valuable to know whether insiders are buying versus knowing if they are selling, as the latter sends an ambiguous message. However, if numerous insiders are selling, shareholders should investigate more.

While insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.

See our latest analysis for Republic Services

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Republic Services

The Executive VP & Chief Commercial Officer, Amanda Hodges, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$1.2m worth of shares at a price of US$186 each. So it's clear an insider wanted to take some cash off the table, even below the current price of US$221. When an insider sells below the current price, it suggests that they considered that lower price to be fair. That makes us wonder what they think of the (higher) recent valuation. However, while insider selling is sometimes discouraging, it's only a weak signal. We note that the biggest single sale was only 49% of Amanda Hodges's holding.

Over the last year, we can see that insiders have bought 619.00 shares worth US$115k. But they sold 22.08k shares for US$4.3m. In total, Republic Services insiders sold more than they bought over the last year. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

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Republic Services Insiders Are Selling The Stock

Over the last three months, we've seen significant insider selling at Republic Services. In total, insiders sold US$1.5m worth of shares in that time, and we didn't record any purchases whatsoever. This may suggest that some insiders think that the shares are not cheap.

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. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. Insiders own 0.1% of Republic Services shares, worth about US$74m. While this is a strong but not outstanding level of insider ownership, it's enough to indicate some alignment between management and smaller shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Republic Services Tell Us?

Insiders sold Republic Services shares recently, but they didn't buy any. Despite some insider buying, the longer term picture doesn't make us feel much more positive. But it is good to see that Republic Services is growing earnings. While insiders do own shares, they don't own a heap, and they have been selling. We're in no rush to buy! So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for Republic Services you should know about.

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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.

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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.