Insider Selling at Domino’s Pizza Inc. (DPZ) and Intel Corporation (INTC), Plus Insider Buying at Three Other Companies

Slightly more than a decade ago, the U.S. Congress enacted the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 that mandated significant changes to reporting requirements. Pursuant to those changes, corporate insiders are required to report securities transactions with the SEC within two days following their trades, instead of 10 days stipulated under the old rules. This reporting requirement enables investors to use insider trading data in a more efficient manner.

Insider trading activity represents a valuable piece of information that can help almost all types of investors in their stock selection and analysis process. Most insider trading pundits assert that insider buying serves as a very good signal to follow, whereas insider selling activity tends to be much more complex to interpret accurately. The increased usage of equity-based compensation has distorted the insider trading data. Indeed, it is close to impossible to figure out the actual reason behind each insider sale out there in the market. Even so, most insiders tend to act as long term-oriented investors rather than short-term-focused traders by buying their company’s shares when they seem undervalued and selling when they look expensive. Thus, insider selling could still be interpreted as a sign that a company’s valuation approaches its “fair” market value. With that in mind, let’s discuss several noteworthy insider sales reported with the SEC on Monday.

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CEO of Battered Advanced Materials Company Buys Shares After Stock Price Plunge

The man at the helm of Park Electrochemical Corp. (NYSE:PKE) boosted his equity holding this past week. The company’s Board Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brian E. Shore, snapped up 7,500 shares on Friday at a price tag of $14.71 each. Following the recent purchase, Mr. Shore currently owns an aggregate of 425,305 shares.

This insider purchase comes several weeks after the global advanced materials company released disappointing results for the second quarter of fiscal 2017, ended August 28. Park Electrochemical Corp. (NYSE:PKE)’s net sales worldwide for the previous quarter were $29.06 million, a disturbing 23% lower than in the same period of the previous year. The decrease in the company’s top line was mainly driven by lower sales of printed circuit materials products in Asia and North America, as well as lower sales of aerospace composite materials, structures and assemblies. Even so, the company’s shares are 2% in the green so far this year despite a 9%-drop in the past month. Royce & Associates, founded by Chuck Royce, was the equity holder of 2.75 million shares of Park Electrochemical Corp. (NYSE:PKE) at the end of the second quarter.

On the next two pages of this article, we will present fresh insider trading activity recently observed at four other companies.

Top-Tier Executives at Low-Priced Oncology Drug Development Company Buy Shares

Two well-informed and influential executives at Champions Oncology Inc. (NASDAQ:CSBR) purchased shares last week. To start with, President Ronnie Morris purchased three blocks of 10,000 shares each on Friday at prices varying from $1.64 to $1.68 per share. Dr. Morris purchased an additional 10,000-share block on Wednesday for $1.70 apiece. Following the recent string of purchases, the President currently owns 1.11 million shares of Champions Oncology. Chief Executive Officer Joel Ackerman bought 2,000 shares last Monday at a weighted average cost of $1.70 per share. According to the latest Form 4 filing, the CEO of the oncology drug development company holds an ownership stake of 1.04 million shares.

Champions Oncology Inc. (NASDAQ:CSBR) develops and markets advanced technology solutions and products used in the development and use of oncology drugs. Specifically, the company’s TumorGraft Technology Platform offers a novel approach to simulating the results of human clinical trials used in developing oncology drugs. This platform is said to be able to facilitate drug discovery with lower costs and increased speed of drug development. The company reported revenue of $3.7 million for the fiscal quarter ended July 31, significantly above the revenue guidance of $3.25 million to $3.5 million. Champions Oncology has seen the value of its shares plunge by 54% this year. Hal Mintz’s Sabby Capital had around 547,000 shares of Champions Oncology Inc. (NASDAQ:CSBR) in its equity portfolio at the end of the June quarter.

Newly-Appointed Executive at Multi-State Bank Holding Company Purchases Shares

One member of American National BankShares Inc. (NASDAQ:AMNB)’s executive team piled up some shares this week. Ramsey K. Hamadi, Executive Vice President since July 2016, acquired 2,000 shares on Monday at $27.16 apiece. After the Monday purchase, Mr. Hamadi currently owns 6,110 shares.

The multi-state bank holding company with total assets of $1.6 billion has seen its market capitalization jump by 6% since the start of the year. American National BankShares Inc. (NASDAQ:AMNB) operates as the holding company for American National Bank, a community bank serving Virginia and North Carolina with 25 banking offices and two loan production offices. The company also manages an additional $780 million of trust, investment and brokerage assets via its Trust and Investment Services Division. The bank holding company reported net income of $3.96 million for the quarter that ended September 30, down from $4.04 million posted a year ago. Jim Simons’ Renaissance Technologies LLC reported ownership of 75,100 shares of American National BankShares Inc. (NASDAQ:AMNB) through its 13F filing for the second quarter.

The final page of this article will discuss fresh insider selling at two well-known companies.

Chairman of Intel’s Boardroom Sells Shares After Release of Unenthusiastic Outlook

The Chairman of Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC)’s boardroom discarded a 24,383-share stake held in a family trust. The sale reported by Andy D. Bryant took place on Thursday at prices ranging from $35.35 to $35.37 per share. Mr. Bryant holds a direct ownership stake of 399,940 shares.

The shares of Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC) recently took a hit after the company issued a less-enthusiastic guidance for the next quarter despite posting third-quarter results that beat even the most-optimistic expectations. Intel recorded revenue of $15.8 billion for the third quarter that ended October 1, up 17% sequentially and up by 9% year-over-year. Some believe the company’s post-earnings report weakness created a buying opportunity for investors, but one of Intel’s most informed insiders has been actually selling shares. Earlier this year, Intel Corporation agreed to sell a majority stake in its cyber security unit, formerly known as McAfee, for $3.1 billion in cash. Although Intel retained a 49%-stake in the business, the deal signaled the end of the company’s affair with cybersecurity. Intel shares are up 2% year-to-date. Ken Fisher’s Fisher Asset Management reported owning 19.84 million shares of Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC) through the latest round of 13Fs.

Board Member at Strong Performing Pizza Restaurant Chain Offloads Shares

One member of Domino’s Pizza Inc. (NYSE:DPZ)’s Board of Directors offloaded some shares last week. Vernon Bud O. Hamilton, who has been a member of the company’s boardroom since May 2005, liquidated 4,000 shares on Friday at prices that fell in the range of $165.18 and $165.29 per share. Following the recent sale, Mr. Hamilton currently owns an aggregate of 30,229 shares.

While analysts are tempering growth expectations for most restaurant companies due to toughening competition from upstart chains and meal-kit sellers, the second-largest pizza restaurant chain in the world has been delivering impressive performance as of late. Domino’s Pizza Inc. (NYSE:DPZ) reported total revenue fro $566.7 million for the three-month period that ended September 11, an increase of $16.9% year-over-year. The company’s same-store sales in the U.S. jumped by an impressive 13% in the previous quarter. Domino’s Pizza registered a 6.7%-increase in same-store revenue in international markets, extending the run of 91 consecutive quarter of positive same-store revenue growth. The well-known pizza delivery chain continued its global expansion in the quarter that ended September 11 with the opening of 316 net new stores, bringing the year-to-date openings to 722 stores. The company’s shares are up 49% this year. Drew Cupps’ Cupps Capital Management owns around 12,000 shares of Domino’s Pizza Inc. (NYSE:DPZ) as of September 30.

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