2 replies to this topic

[ogm]

NEW YORK (AP) -- While investor worries about the deteriorating credit market roiled Wall Street, insiders have been sending decidedly bullish signals for the past three weeks, according to a report on insider trading released Thursday by InsiderScore.com.

After weeks of erratic activity, stocks plummeted again on Thursday after French bank BNP Paribas said it would freeze three funds invested in the U.S. subprime mortgages and retailers reported lackluster monthly sales.

But insider sentiment has been firmly bullish throughout the market gyrations, driven by broad-based buying activity said InsiderScore.com., which analyzes insider trading data.

"The general message they're sending is that the sell-off is overdone and they believe it's temporary," said InsiderScore.com Director of Research Ben Silverman Silverman. "Whether that's true or not remains to be seen."

Silverman noted, however, that insiders as a group have predicted broad market movement in the past. He says insiders also stepped up buying during the market fluctuations in February of this year, which stabilized soon after. The report also noted that the last comparable bullish period among insiders, which occurred in July 2006, also coincided with a temporary Dow Jones Industrial Average sell-off.

This round of insider buying is led by the troubled financial industry, particularly among real estate investment trusts and other companies exposed to the subprime mortgage fallout.

The chief executive of Thornburg Mortgage Inc. contributed to cluster buying, or buying by multiple insiders, at the mortgage provider. Cluster buying also took place at specialty finance company KKR Financial Corp., which is sponsored by private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co., and at real estate investment trusts RAIT Financial Trust and Brandywine Realty Trust.

The chief executive of MF Global Ltd., which spun off from Man Group PLC in July in a disappointing initial public offering, acquired about 39,000 shares of the brokerage. Also, two directors of American Express each purchased about $2 million in stock.

Insiders at utilities and in the energy sector were also bullish. A director of Schlumberger Ltd. bought 12,000 of the oilfield services company's stock. The chairman and CEO of oil and gas producer Equitable Resources Inc. made the largest insider buy in more than four years. The chairman of another oilfield services company -- RPC Inc. -- also made several large purchases.

In addition, the top executives and two directors of Energy Transfer Partners LP and its parent Energy Transfer Equity LP acquired a total of $4.6 million in shares after federal regulators accused the natural gas pipeline and trading company of manipulating natural gas prices.

Notable insider buys in other sectors included purchases at Best Buy Co. and Xerox Corp. Xerox Corp.'s top three executives bought stock after its second-quarter earnings report drove down shares. According to InsiderScore.com, the purchases were the first for any Xerox insider in nearly two years. The CEO of Best Buy Co. made the largest insider purchase of the company's stock in more than 2 years as shares fell to a 52-week low.

The technology sector was the exception to the bullish trend. Insiders at Garmin Ltd., Lawson Software Inc., Intel Corp., VeriSign Inc., Juniper Networks Inc. and International Business Machines Corp. made significant sales.

[Curt]

I've wondered if insiders do buys for two reasons, one we think we know, the other is to telegraph to the market. We also know the board will loan it's officers low/no interest loans to buy stock. If we think there's a PPT why not believe this insider buying could also be apart of the bull bait plan? Just offering another theory. curt

[ogm]

I've wondered if insiders do buys for two reasons, one we think we know, the other is to telegraph to the market. We also know the board will loan it's officers low/no interest loans to buy stock.

If we think there's a PPT why not believe this insider buying could also be apart of the bull bait plan?

Just offering another theory.

curt

I think insiders buy to make money, if its serious volumes. Not 1-2k shares. I mean like RAS CEO for example.. 100k shares... that guy wants to make money.

And conspiracy theories are plentiful in this market

Edited by ogm, 09 August 2007 - 09:29 PM.