Some Insider Buying at Cogint Inc. (COGT) and Delta Air Lines Inc. (DAL), Plus Noteworthy Insider Selling at 3 Other Companies

Past research shows that there are predictable or routine insider trades that do not convey meaningful information for the future of firms, so retail investors monitoring insider trading activity need to learn how to filter out the information-rich trades from the routine ones. But how can investors differentiate between the two types of transactions?

Sales of freshly-exercised stock options or sales conducted under pre-arranged trading plans account for a high portion of the routine kind of insider trading. The insider selling related to freshly-exercised stock options or pre-arranged trading plans is mainly driven by diversification or liquidity needs, which is why these two kinds of insider trading are considered routine. Insider Monkey believes that spur-of-the-moment insider transactions represent a set of information-rich trades that contain much more useful information for possible stock movement than routine transactions which often say nothing at all. That said, the following article will discuss a set of informative insider transactions reported with the SEC on Tuesday.

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Several Insiders at Renamed Data and Analytics Company Purchase Shares

Let’s kick off our discussion with the insider buying observed at Cogint Inc. (NASDAQ:COGT), where several insiders purchased shares earlier this week. To start with, Ryan Schulke, the CEO of New York-based Fluent LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Cogint, purchased 150,000 shares on Monday at a price of $3.15 per share, boosting his overall holding to 6.05 million shares. Matthew Conlin, President of Fluent LLC, snapped up 100,000 shares on the same day at a price tag of $3.15 each. Mr. Conlin currently owns an aggregate of 5.46 million shares after the recent purchase.

The data and analytics company adopted Cogint Inc. as its new name instead of IDI Inc. in mid-September of 2016, as well as re-listed from NYSEMKT to NASDAQ. The shares of Cogint Inc. (NASDAQ:COGT) are down by 34% since mid-September despite having gained 11% in the past three months. Due to strong revenue growth in the third quarter and continued momentum in the first part of the fourth quarter, the company’s management said they anticipate reaching their previously-communicated 2016 revenue guidance of $183 million to $187 million. Jim Simons’ Renaissance Technologies owned 23,100 shares of Cogint Inc. (NASDAQ:COGT) at the end of September.

The following two pages of this insider trading article will discuss the fresh insider buying and selling at four other companies.

Long-Serving Delta Pilot Acquires Stake in Delta Air Lines

A member of Delta Air Lines Inc. (NYSE:DAL)’s Board of Directors and a long-serving employee initiated a stake in the company this week. Board member Douglas R. Ralph, who has been a Delta pilot since 1991 and is currently a Captain of a Boeing 767ER aircraft, purchased a 1,000-share stake on Monday at $49.04 apiece.

Earlier this month, the second-largest U.S. airline by traffic said it anticipates that its passenger unit revenue for the first quarter of 2017 will increase in the range of 0%-to-2%, which could represent the first quarterly increase in two years should expectations be met. Analysts at securities brokerage and investment banking firm Imperial Capital recently reiterated their $52 price target on Delta Air Lines Inc. (NYSE:DAL) despite lowering estimates modestly on higher fuel costs, which are expected to offset higher unit revenues. To be more detailed, Imperial Capital analysts expect passenger revenue per available seat mile (PRASM) to increase by 2.5% in fiscal 2017 versus 0.5% previously, whereas the price of jet fuel is anticipated to average $1.75 per gallon in fiscal 2017 versus $1.65 previously. Charles Paquelet’s Skylands Capital trimmed its stake in Delta Air Lines Inc. (NYSE:DAL) by 8% to 163,800 shares during the fourth quarter.

Board Member at Bank Holding Company Offloads Huge Block of Shares

Having discussed some insider buying reported on Tuesday, we can now focus on a set of noteworthy insider sales reported on the same day. To begin with, one member of People’s United Financial Inc. (NASDAQ:PBCT)’s Board discarded a great deal of shares this week according to a fresh Form 4 filing. Board member Richard M. Hoyt offloaded 100,000 shares on Tuesday at prices varying from $18.88 to $18.90 per share. After the sizable sale, Mr. Hoyt currently owns a total of 62,882 shares.

The shares of the bank holding company for People’s United Bank, National Association have gained 33% in the past year, which possibly explains the Board member’s decision to offload shares. The sale comes shortly after People’s United Financial Inc. (NASDAQ:PBCT) released its financial results for the fourth quarter, when the company reported net income of $281 million for 2016 versus $260.1 million for 2015. In late-June, the company agreed to acquire New York-based Suffolk Bancorp (NYSE:SCNB), which had total assets of $2.2 billion, deposits of $1.9 billion and operated 27 branches in the greater Long Island area at the end of September. The acquisition will deepen the acquirer’s presence in the New York metro area. The hedge fund sentiment towards People’s United Financial declined during the third quarter, as the number of asset managers tracked by our system that were invested in the bank holding company dropped to 12 from 17. Dmitry Balyasny’s Balyasny Asset Management had 1.65 million shares of People’s United Financial Inc. (NASDAQ:PBCT) in its portfolio at the end of the third quarter.

The next page will discuss the fresh insider selling observed at two other companies.

Insiders at Software Maker that Shifts to Subscription Model Sell Shares

There was a cluster of insider selling at PTC Inc. (NASDAQ:PTC) earlier this week, though most sales were conducted in a pre-arranged manner. Matthew Lessner Cohen, Executive Vice President of Customer Success, sold 14,553 shares on Monday at prices that fell between $50.00 and $50.16 per share, cutting his ownership to 18,250 shares. This was the only spontaneous insider sale completed by the insiders who formed the consortium of sellers.

As the software maker continues to successfully transition to a subscription model, its financial results become weaker and weaker (at least for the short-to-medium term). PTC Inc. (NASDAQ:PTC)’s shares gained 6% on Thursday despite the company announcing a cut in its guidance for revenue, margins, earnings per share, and free cash flow. It appears that investors mainly focused on the company’s bookings, which increased by 31% year-over-year in the fiscal first quarter that ended December 31, exceeding the company’s expectations. Around 56% of PTC’s bookings were sold as subscriptions in 2016, compared to 17% in 2015. Since PTC’s shares are currently trading near their 52-week high of $52.27 after gaining 72% in the past year, the cluster of insider selling mentioned above should not be a reason for concern. Ken Griffin’s Citadel Advisors was the equity holder of 2.05 million shares of PTC Inc. (NASDAQ:PTC) at the end of September.

Board Member of Valhi Discards 10K Shares

One member of Valhi Inc. (NYSE:VHI)’s Board of Directors sold a relatively large portion of his stake in the company this week. W. Hayden McIlroy, a director of Valhi since 2003, liquidated 10,000 shares on Monday at a price of $3.25 per share. Mr. McIlroy currently owns a total of 28,500 shares after the sale.

Valhi Inc. (NYSE:VHI) operates as a holding company that organized its business operations into four reportable operating segments: chemicals; component products; waste management; and real estate management and development. The company has majority control of Kronos, a global producer and marketer of value-added titanium dioxide pigments, as well as operates in the component industry through its majority control of CompX, a manufacturer of security products used in a number of industries. Valhi shares have skyrocketed by 199% in the past 12 months, which clearly portends some diversification on the part of insiders, especially considering the rough patch the company has suffered in recent years. Jim Simons’ Renaissance Technologies had 205,300 shares of Valhi Inc. (NYSE:VHI) in its portfolio on September 30.

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