In the last year, multiple insiders have substantially increased their holdings of Nuvation Bio Inc. (NYSE:NUVB) stock, indicating that insiders' optimism about the company's prospects has increased.

While insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing, we do think it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing.

Nuvation Bio Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

The Independent Director Kim Blickenstaff made the biggest insider purchase in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$500k worth of shares at a price of US$2.90 each. That means that an insider was happy to buy shares at above the current price of US$1.96. While their view may have changed since the purchase was made, this does at least suggest they have had confidence in the company's future. In our view, the price an insider pays for shares is very important. It is generally more encouraging if they paid above the current price, as it suggests they saw value, even at higher levels.

Happily, we note that in the last year insiders paid US$720k for 272.19k shares. But insiders sold 56.36k shares worth US$163k. In total, Nuvation Bio insiders bought more than they sold over the last year. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

See our latest analysis for Nuvation Bio

Nuvation Bio is not the only stock that insiders are buying. For those who like to find small cap companies at attractive valuations, this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

Insider Ownership Of Nuvation Bio

For a common shareholder, it is worth checking how many shares are held by company 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. Nuvation Bio insiders own 25% of the company, currently worth about US$159m based on the recent share price. Most shareholders would be happy to see this sort of insider ownership, since it suggests that management incentives are well aligned with other shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Nuvation Bio Tell Us?

It doesn't really mean much that no insider has traded Nuvation Bio shares in the last quarter. On a brighter note, the transactions over the last year are encouraging. Judging from their transactions, and high insider ownership, Nuvation Bio insiders feel good about the company's future. So while it's helpful to know what insiders are doing in terms of buying or selling, it's also helpful to know the risks that a particular company is facing. To help with this, we've discovered 3 warning signs (1 is potentially serious!) that you ought to be aware of before buying any shares in Nuvation Bio.

But note: Nuvation Bio may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with high ROE and low debt.

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.

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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.