Many JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) insiders ditched their stock over the past year, which may be of interest to the company's shareholders. When evaluating insider transactions, knowing whether insiders are buying is usually more beneficial than knowing whether they are selling, as the latter can be open to many interpretations. However, when multiple insiders sell stock over a specific duration, shareholders should take notice as that could possibly be a red flag.

While we would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.

View our latest analysis for JPMorgan Chase

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At JPMorgan Chase

In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the Chairman & CEO, James Dimon, sold US$150m worth of shares at a price of US$183 per share. That means that even when the share price was below the current price of US$270, an insider wanted to cash in some shares. 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. Please do note, however, that sellers may have a variety of reasons for selling, so we don't know for sure what they think of the stock price. We note that the biggest single sale was only 9.6% of James Dimon's holding.

Insiders in JPMorgan Chase didn't buy any shares in the last year. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and 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!

I will like JPMorgan Chase better if I see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out this free list of undervalued and small cap stocks with considerable, recent, insider buying.

Insiders At JPMorgan Chase Have Sold Stock Recently

The last three months saw significant insider selling at JPMorgan Chase. In total, insiders dumped US$5.9m worth of shares in that time, and we didn't record any purchases whatsoever. Overall this makes us a bit cautious, but it's not the be all and end all.

Insider Ownership

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. JPMorgan Chase insiders own 0.4% of the company, currently worth about US$2.8b based on the recent share price. Most shareholders would be happy to see this sort of insider ownership, since it suggests that management incentives are well aligned with other shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At JPMorgan Chase Tell Us?

Insiders sold stock recently, but they haven't been buying. Looking to the last twelve months, our data doesn't show any insider buying. But it is good to see that JPMorgan Chase is growing earnings. It is good to see high insider ownership, but the insider selling leaves us cautious. So while it's helpful to know what insiders are doing in terms of buying or selling, it's also helpful to know the risks that a particular company is facing. For instance, we've identified 2 warning signs for JPMorgan Chase (1 is potentially serious) you should be aware of.

Of course JPMorgan Chase may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of high quality companies.

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.