Insider Weekends – Large Purchase by the CEO of Skechers

Welcome to edition 337 of Insider Weekends. Insider buying increased last week with insiders buying $57.41 million of stock compared to $39.06 million in the week prior. Selling on the other hand decreased with insiders selling $1.66 billion of stock last week compared to $2.03 billion 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 purchases that week. The adjusted ratio for last week dropped down to 28.93. In other words, insiders sold almost 29 times as much stock as they purchased. The Sell/Buy ratio this week compares favorably with the prior week, when the ratio stood at 51.86. 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.

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. Skechers U.S.A., Inc. (SKX): $26.16

Chief Executive Officer Robert Greenberg acquired 500,000 shares of this textile  company, paying $21.96 per share for a total amount of $10.98 million.  These shares were purchased indirectly through a trust.

This large purchase by Mr. Greenberg triggered investor enthusiasm for the company, which translated into a nearly 16% increase in the stock price in a single day. Long-term investors that invested in Sketchers in late 2011 or early 2012 enjoyed a more than 10 fold increase in the stock through August 2015 driven by strong growth, especially in international markets.

While the company continues to grow its top line at a double digit pace, a decline in the rate of growth hit the stock hard and it lost more than half its value after hitting a peak of over $50 last year. The decline in the stock accelerated after it reported results last quarter that missed analyst estimates for both the top line and bottom line. Investors were also not happy with management’s weak outlook for Q4 2016. The decline in the rate of growth was driven by a slowdown in Skechers’ domestic business, while the international segment continues to grow at a double digit rate.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Skechers U.S.A., Inc. here.

2. American Homes 4 Rent (AMH): $20.8

Director Tamara Hughes Gustavson acquired 162,400 shares of this real estate investment trust, paying $20.52 per share for a total amount of $3.33 million. Ms. Gustavson increased her stake by 1.25% to 13,138,542 shares with this purchase.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for American Homes 4 Rent here.

3. tronc, Inc. (TRNC): $12.94

Shares of this newspapers and media company were acquired by 2 insiders:

• Director Patrick Soon-Shiong acquired 149,697 shares, paying $12.89 per share for a total amount of $1.93 million. Mr. Soon-Shiong increased his stake by 17.63% to 998,763 shares with this purchase.
• Director Michael W. Ferro Jr. acquired 42,126 shares, paying $12.93 per share for a total amount of $544,843. These shares were purchased indirectly by Merrick Venture Management, LLC.

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

4. The Home Depot, Inc. (HD): $129.87

Director Mark C. Vadon acquired 15,000 shares of this home improvement retailer, paying $129.87 per share for a total amount of $1.95 million. Mr. Vadon increased his stake by 93.20% to 31,095 shares with this purchase.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for The Home Depot, Inc. here.

5. TransDigm Group Incorporated (TDG): $245.27

Director Raymond F. Laubenthal acquired 7,200 shares of this aircraft components manufacturer, paying $245.39 per share for a total amount of $1.77 million. These shares were purchased indirectly through a trust.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for TransDigm Group Incorporated here.

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

Notable Insider Sales:

1. Facebook, Inc. (FB): $115.4

Shares of Facebook were sold by 4 insiders:

• COB and CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 784,791 shares for $121.05, generating $94.99 million from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly by various entities.
• Director Jan Koum sold 237,699 shares for $120.45, generating $28.63 million from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly through a trust.
• Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg sold 109,000 shares for $120.78, generating $13.17 million from the sale. 52,404 of these shares were sold as a result of exercising options immediately prior to the sale.
• Chief Product Officer Christopher K. Cox sold 15,600 shares for $120.36, generating $1.88 million from the sale.

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

2. Eversource Energy (ES): $51.68

Chairman of the Board and Trustee Thomas J. May sold 200,000 shares of this utility holding company for $53.80, generating $10.76 million from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Eversource Energy here.

3. Las Vegas Sands Corp. (LVS): $60.99

President & COO Robert G. Goldstein sold 169,111 shares of this resorts & casinos operator for $62.84, generating $10.63 million from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly through a trust.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Las Vegas Sands Corp. here.

4. Masimo Corporation (MASI): $61.31

CEO and Chairman of the Board Joe E. Kiani sold 140,989 shares of this medical technology company for $62.22, generating $8.77 million from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly through a trust.

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

5. Fidelity National Financial, Inc. (FNF): $31.79

Director Frank P. Willey sold 264,539 shares of this insurance company for $32.31, generating $8.55 million from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Fidelity National Financial, Inc. here.

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

Disclaimer: I hold a long position in Skechers (SKX). Please do your own due diligence before buying or selling any securities mentioned in this article. We do not warrant the completeness or accuracy of the content or data provided in this article.

Connect with me on LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/asifsuria or follow me on Twitter @asifsuria