We often see insiders buying up shares in companies that perform well over the long term. On the other hand, we'd be remiss not to mention that insider sales have been known to precede tough periods for a business. So shareholders might well want to know whether insiders have been buying or selling shares in Asure Software, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASUR).

What Is Insider Selling?

It is perfectly legal for company insiders, including board members, to buy and sell stock in a company. However, most countries require that the company discloses such transactions to the market.

Insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing. But logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares. For example, a Harvard University study found that 'insider purchases earn abnormal returns of more than 6% per year'.

Check out our latest analysis for Asure Software

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Asure Software

In the last twelve months, the biggest single purchase by an insider was when Independent Director William Drew bought US$67k worth of shares at a price of US$6.68 per share. So it's clear an insider wanted to buy, at around the current price, which is US$7.79. That means they have been optimistic about the company in the past, though they may have changed their mind. If someone buys shares at well below current prices, it's a good sign on balance, but keep in mind they may no longer see value. Happily, the Asure Software insiders decided to buy shares at close to current prices.

Over the last year, we can see that insiders have bought 30.00k shares worth US$175k. But they sold 1.63k shares for US$11k. In total, Asure Software insiders bought more than they sold over the last year. The average buy price was around US$5.84. To my mind it is good that insiders have invested their own money in the company. However, you should keep in mind that they bought when the share price was meaningfully below today's levels. You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last 12 months, below. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!

Asure Software is not the only stock insiders are buying. So take a peek at this free list of growing companies with insider buying.

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. Insiders own 6.3% of Asure Software shares, worth about US$9.3m, according to our data. Whilst better than nothing, we're not overly impressed by these holdings.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Asure Software Tell Us?

The fact that there have been no Asure Software insider transactions recently certainly doesn't bother us. On a brighter note, the transactions over the last year are encouraging. While we have no worries about the insider transactions, we'd be more comfortable if they owned more Asure Software stock. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Asure Software. While conducting our analysis, we found that Asure Software has 2 warning signs and it would be unwise to ignore these.

Of course Asure Software 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, 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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