Quite a few insiders have dramatically grown their holdings in Ambac Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AMBC) over the past 12 months. An insider's optimism about the company's prospects is a positive sign.

While insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing, logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares.

Check out our latest analysis for Ambac Financial Group

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Ambac Financial Group

In the last twelve months, the biggest single purchase by an insider was when Independent Director Michael Price bought US$1m worth of shares at a price of US$11.21 per share. That implies that an insider found the current price of US$11.42 per share to be enticing. 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. While we always like to see insider buying, it's less meaningful if the purchases were made at much lower prices, as the opportunity they saw may have passed. The good news for Ambac Financial Group share holders is that insiders were buying at near the current price.

While Ambac Financial Group insiders bought shares during the last year, they didn't sell. 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 undervalued small cap companies that insiders are buying.

Insider Ownership Of Ambac Financial Group

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. It appears that Ambac Financial Group insiders own 2.8% of the company, worth about US$15m. 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 Ambac Financial Group Tell Us?

The fact that there have been no Ambac Financial Group insider transactions recently certainly doesn't bother us. But insiders have shown more of an appetite for the stock, over the last year. Overall we don't see anything to make us think Ambac Financial Group insiders are doubting the company, and they do own shares. While it's good to be aware of 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. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 1 warning sign for Ambac Financial Group you should know about.

But note: Ambac Financial Group 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.

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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.