Insider Weekends – April 20, 2012

  • April 21, 2012

Welcome to edition ninety eight of Insider Weekends. Insider buying increased slightly with insiders purchasing $19.9 million of their stock last week compared to $19.8 million in the week prior. Selling more than doubled with insiders selling $499.55 million worth of stock last week compared to $215.7 million in the week prior. Almost half of this selling was related to shareholders selling part of their stake in two IPOs.

Sell/Buy Ratio: The insider Sell/Buy ratio is calculated by dividing the total insider sales in a given week by total insider purchases that week. The adjusted ratio for last week went up to 25.1. In other words, insiders sold more than 25 times as much stock as they purchased. The Sell/Buy ratio this week compares unfavorably with the week prior when the ratio stood at 10.9. 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.

Insider Sell Buy Ratio April 20, 2012
Insider Sell Buy Ratio April 20, 2012

Note: As mentioned in the first post in this series, certain industries have their preferred metrics such as same store sales for retailers, funds from operations (FFO) for REITs and revenue per available room (RevPAR) for hotels that provide a better basis for comparison than simple valuation metrics. However metrics like Price/Earnings, Price/Sales and Enterprise Value/EBITDA included below should provide a good starting point for analyzing the majority of stocks.

Notable Insider Buys:

1. Opko Health, Inc. (OPK): $4.99

CEO & Chairman Phillip Frost M.D. acquired 160,000 shares of this medical devices and drug development company, paying $4.51 per share for a total amount of $721,414. These shares were purchased indirectly by Frost Gamma Investments Trust.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Opko Health, Inc. here.

P/E: N/AForward P/E: N/AIndustry P/E: 21.73
P/S: 51.57Price/Book: 8.97EV/EBITDA: -71.29
Market Cap: $1.47BAvg. Daily Volume: 1,794,24052 Week Range: $3.15 – $5.85

2. EV Energy Partners LP (EVEP): $63.36

Shares of this oil and gas company were acquired by 2 insiders:

  • Executive Chairman of the Board John B. Walker acquired 10,000 shares, paying $59.02 per share for a total amount of $590,200. These shares were purchased indirectly by John B. and Lisa A. Walker, and other family members.
  • President and CEO Mark A. Houser acquired 1,500 shares, paying $62.64 per share for a total amount of $93,960. These shares were purchased indirectly by DSEA II, LP.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for EV Energy Partners LP here.

P/E: 23.64Forward P/E: 38.4Industry P/E: 12.48
P/S: 9.28Price/Book: 2.6EV/EBITDA: 15.32
Market Cap: $2.41BAvg. Daily Volume: 366,45752 Week Range: $47.58 – $77.96

3. Winmark Corp. (WINA): $51.98

Chairman & CEO John L. Morgan acquired 10,000 shares of this retail franchise company, paying $52.43 per share for a total amount of $524,300. Mr. Morgan increased his stake by 0.60% to 1,669,678 shares with this purchase.

Voluntary Disclosure: I hold a long position in Winmark in my long-term portfolio.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Winmark Corp. here.

P/E: 19.32Forward P/E: N/AIndustry P/E: 15.33
P/S: 4.88Price/Book: 7.02EV/EBITDA: 9.5
Market Cap: $263.80MAvg. Daily Volume: 10,72552 Week Range: $35 – $71.49

4. magicJack VocalTec Ltd. (CALL): $23.37

Director Gerald T. Vento acquired 22,000 shares of this voice-over-IP telecommunication services provider, paying $23.07 per share for a total amount of $507,602. Mr. Vento increased his stake by 26.99% to 103,500 shares with this purchase.

This Israel based company has managed to narrow net losses over the last few years even as total revenue declined in 2011. Cash flow from operations is positive and continues to grow. The company recently forecast revenue growth of 20-30% in 2013 and expects to earn between $2 to $2.50 per share before “extraordinary items”.

The stock has had a wild ride by going up nearly 200% this year before giving back some of those gains in March and April.

Voluntary Disclosure: I hold a long position in magicJack VocalTec in my trading portfolio.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for magicJack VocalTec Ltd. here.

P/E: N/AForward P/E: 14.16Industry P/E: 34.04
P/S: 4.25Price/Book: N/AEV/EBITDA: -901.08
Market Cap: $491.19MAvg. Daily Volume: 441,01052 Week Range: $9.49 – $28.22

5. Valhi, Inc. (VHI): $52.93

Chairman of the Board Harold C. Simmons acquired 7,851 shares of this chemicals and toxic waste management company, paying $52.02 per share for a total amount of $408,416. Mr. Simmons increased his stake by 1.81% to 440,532 shares with this purchase.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Valhi, Inc. here.

P/E: 27.71Forward P/E: N/AIndustry P/E: N/A
P/S: 2.77Price/Book: N/AEV/EBITDA: 13.02
Market Cap: $5.98BAvg. Daily Volume: 15,46852 Week Range: $29.72 – $65.07

You can view the full list of purchases from this Insider Buying page.

Notable Insider Sales:

1. DDI Corp. (DDIC): $12.95

Director Bryant R. Riley sold 437,735 shares of this printed circuit boards company for $12.97, generating $5.7 million from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly through various trusts and entities.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for DDI Corp. here.

P/E: 12.45Forward P/E: 10.88Industry P/E: 15.17
P/S: 1.01Price/Book: 2.63EV/EBITDA: 7.16
Market Cap: $265.16MAvg. Daily Volume: 323,01452 Week Range: $6.66 – $13.01

2. Fastenal Company (FAST): $48.21

Director Robert A. Kierlin sold 100,000 shares of this industrial and construction materials company for $48.56, generating $4.9 million from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Fastenal Company here.

P/E: 37.66Forward P/E: 27.08Industry P/E: 13.53
P/S: 4.86Price/Book: 9.14EV/EBITDA: 21.16
Market Cap: $14.27BAvg. Daily Volume: 2,304,04052 Week Range: $29.14 – $55.05

3. The TJX Companies, Inc. (TJX): $41.02

Director Bernard Cammarata sold 100,000 shares of this discount retailer for $40.00, generating $4 million from the sale.

We have seen active insider selling in both TJX and competitor Ross Stores (ROST).

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for The TJX Companies, Inc. here.

P/E: 21.25Forward P/E: 15.54Industry P/E: N/A
P/S: 1.32Price/Book: 9.56EV/EBITDA: 10.18
Market Cap: $30.63BAvg. Daily Volume: 4,461,02052 Week Range: $24.6 – $41.58

4. Limited Brands, Inc. (LTD): $49.26

EVP & Chief Admin Officer Martyn R. Redgrave sold 67,250 shares of this apparel chain for $47.91, generating $3.2 million from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Limited Brands, Inc. here.

P/E: 18.24Forward P/E: 15.44Industry P/E: 17.66
P/S: 1.37Price/Book: 105.69EV/EBITDA: 9.5
Market Cap: $14.26BAvg. Daily Volume: 2,841,71052 Week Range: $31.43 – $49.96

5. Comcast Corporation (CMCSA): $29.45

Chairman of Board, President & CEO Brian L. Roberts sold 105,495 shares of this entertainment and telecommunications provider for $29.87, generating $3.2 million from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Comcast Corporation here.

P/E: 19.63Forward P/E: 13.57Industry P/E: 15.95
P/S: 1.43Price/Book: 1.69EV/EBITDA: 6.33
Market Cap: $79.69BAvg. Daily Volume: 13,575,70052 Week Range: $19.19 – $30.41

You can view the full list of sales from this Insider Sales page.