Some General Motors Company (NYSE:GM) shareholders may be a little concerned to see that the Chairman & CEO, Mary Barra, recently sold a substantial US$16m worth of stock at a price of US$53.16 per share. That's a big disposal, and it decreased their holding size by 26%, which is notable but not too bad.

General Motors Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

In fact, the recent sale by Mary Barra was the biggest sale of General Motors shares made by an insider individual in the last twelve months, according to our records. That means that an insider was selling shares at around the current price of US$52.07. We generally don't like to see insider selling, but the lower the sale price, the more it concerns us. We note that this sale took place at around the current price, so it isn't a major concern, though it's hardly a good sign.

In total, General Motors insiders sold more than they bought over the last year. 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!

I will like General Motors better if I see some big insider buys.

Insider Ownership Of General Motors

Another way to test the alignment between the leaders of a company and other shareholders is to look at how many shares they own. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. General Motors insiders own about US$130m worth of shares (which is 0.2% of the company). This kind of significant ownership by insiders does generally increase the chance that the company is run in the interest of all shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At General Motors Tell Us?

Insiders haven't bought General Motors stock in the last three months, but there was some selling. Despite some insider buying, the longer term picture doesn't make us feel much more positive. On the plus side, General Motors makes money, and is growing profits. The company boasts high insider ownership, but we're a little hesitant, given the history of share sales. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing General Motors.

Of course General Motors 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.

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.