Insider Weekends – August 06, 2010

Welcome to edition nine of Insider Weekends. Insider buying increased once again last week with insiders purchasing $37.65 million of their stock when compared to $13.42 million in the week prior. Selling also increased with insiders selling $821.45 million worth of stock when compared to $498.22 million in the week prior.

Sell/Buy Ratio:

The insider Sell/Buy ratio is calculated by dividing the total insider sales in a given week by total insider buying in that week. The adjusted ratio for last week dropped once again to 21.82. In other words, insiders sold almost 22 times as much stock as they purchased.

The Sell/Buy ratio this week compares favorably with the week prior when the ratio stood at 37.11 (32.97 without the AutoZone sales). We are calculating an adjusted ratio by removing transactions by funds and companies and trying as best as possible only to retain information about insiders and 10% owners who are not funds or companies.

Notable Insider Buys:

1. Dynex Capital Inc. (DX): $9.98

Shares of this Real Estate Investment Trust were purchased by four insiders. These purchases were part of a $5 million offering.

• Chairman & CEO Thomas Akin acquired 150,000 shares, paying $9.43 per share for a total amount of $1.4 million
• Chief Investment Officer Byron Boston acquired 4,000 shares, paying $9.43 per share for a total amount of $37,720
• EVP,COO & CFO Stephen Benedetti acquired 3,000 shares, paying $9.43 per share for a total amount of $28,290
• Director Leon Felman acquired 4,000 shares, paying $9.43 per share for a total amount of $37,720

2. Cymer Inc. (CYMI): $33.97

Director Eric Ruttenberg acquired 33,000 shares of this semiconductor equipment manufacturer, paying $33.5 per share for a total amount of $1.1 million. This follows a 17,000 share purchase as discussed in the last Insider Weekends post. Mr. Ruttenberg is co-managing member of New York based fund Tinicum Capital Partners.

3. MDC Partners Inc. (MDCA): $12.64

Shares of this marketing communications services provider were purchased by two insiders:

• Chairman, CEO & President Miles Nadal acquired 75,788 shares, paying $12.37 per share for a total amount of $937,407
• Vice Chairman Stephen Pustil acquired 5,000 shares, paying $12.45 per share for a total amount of $62,250

4. Helix Energy Solutions Group, Inc. (HLX): $10.64

President & CEO Owen Kratz acquired 103,500 shares of this international offshore energy company, paying $9.62 per share for a total amount of $995,160.

5. Akamai Technologies Inc. (AKAM): $39.9

Director David Kenny acquired 25,000 shares of this internet content delivery company, paying $38.78 per share for a total amount of $969,500.

Notable Insider Sales:

1. Crown Castle International Corp. (CCI): $40.54

Stocks of this diversified communication services provider were sold by two insiders:

• Director John Kelly sold 150,000 shares for $41.01 per share, generating $6.15 million
• Director David Abrams sold 1 million shares for $41 per share, generating $41 million

Mr. Kelly also sold an additional 149,600 shares but that sale was as a result of exercising options.

2. Ford Motor Co. (F): $13.04

With Ford swinging to a profit, Executive Chairman William Ford Jr. is now collecting a salary for the first time in 5 years and also decided to sell some Ford stock along with one other insider.

• Director Edsel Ford II sold 179,000 shares for $13.05 per share, generating $2.34 million
• Chairman Clay William Ford Jr. sold 3,527,854 shares for $12.95 per share, generating $45.69 million. Nearly half of Mr. Ford’s shares were sold as a result of exercising options.

3. Wynn Resorts Ltd. (WYNN): $91.52

Shares of this developer, owner and operator of destination casino resorts were sold by two insiders:

• Director Elaine Wynn sold 147,383 shares for $89.11 per share, generating $13.13 million
• Linda Chen, President Wynn International Marketing, sold 30,000 shares for $92.03 per share, generating $2.76 million

4. Herbalife Ltd. (HLF): $56.49

Chief Operating Officer Richard Goudis sold 262,500 shares of this weight management and nutritional supplement company for $54.5 per share, generating $14.31 million.

5. Isilon Systems, Inc. (ISLN): $17.8

Shares of this Network Attached Storage (NAS) systems were sold by two directors. A number of other insiders including the CFO also sold stock but those sales were a result of option exercises.

• Director Barry Fidelmen sold 764,990 shares for $17.95 per share, generating $13.73 million. These shares were sold indirectly through the Atlas Venture Fund. Mr. Fidelmen is a Partner of Atlas Venture.
• Director Matthew McIlwain sold 12,500 shares for $17.31 per share, generating $216,395.

Contributing Author: Ann Kumar