Insider Weekends – July 20, 2012

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 6.8. In other words, insiders sold almost 7 times as much stock as they purchased. The Sell/Buy ratio this week compares unfavorably with the week prior when the ratio stood at 4.9. 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 July 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM): $33.9

Chairman & CEO James Dimon acquired 500,000 shares of this global financial services firm, paying $34.22 per share for a total amount of $17.1 million. Mr. Dimon increased his stake by 18.34% to 3,226,153 shares with this purchase.

Jamie Dimon directly purchased 360,000 common shares. He also bought 65,000 shares indirectly for the benefit of his wife and 75,000 shares for a limited liability company. Following the purchases he sold 12,142 preferred shares indirectly at $1,110 a piece, for a total of $13.48 million through charitable trusts, limited liability companies and other trusts.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for JPMorgan Chase & Co. here.

2. Navistar International Corporation (NAV): $24

10% Owner Carl C. Icahn acquired 237,414 shares of this truck and diesel engine manufacturer, paying $22.98 for a total amount of $5.5 million.

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

3. Emmis Communications Corp. (EMMS): $2.01

Shares of this radio broadcasting and magazine publishing company were acquired by 2 insiders:

• Chairman and CEO Jeffrey H. Smulyan acquired 384,966 shares, paying $1.90 per share for a total amount of $730,542. These shares were purchased indirectly by HSJS, LLC.
• 10% owner Herbert Simon acquired 141,023 shares, paying $1.9 per share for a total amount of $265,545.
• Executive VP, COO/CFO Patrick M. Walsh acquired 1,630 shares, paying $1.79 per share for a total amount of $2,921. Mr. Walsh increased his stake by 1.82% to 91,234 shares with this purchase.

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

4. Opko Health, Inc. (OPK): $4.5

CEO & Chairman Phillip Frost M.D. acquired 187,500 shares of this medical devices and drug development company, paying $4.60 per share for a total amount of $862,442. These shares were purchased indirectly by Frost Gamma Investments Trust.

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

5. ADTRAN Inc. (ADTN): $21.665

Director William L. Marks acquired 8,600 shares of this telecom equipment provider, paying $21.94 per share for a total amount of $188,650. These shares were purchased indirectly through an IRA.

This is an interesting company that has seen its stock lose nearly a third of its value this month following a steep decline in second quarter operating earnings and flat revenue. Just like other network equipment providers like Acme Packet (APKT) and Calix (CALX), the company is suffering from a slow down in telecom capital expenditure. The stock trades for 8 times EBITDA while sporting operating margins approaching 20%.

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

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

Notable Insider Sales:

1. JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM): $33.9

Shares of this global financial services firm were sold by 2 insiders:

• Chairman & CEO James Dimon sold 12,142 shares for $1110.00, generating $13.5 million from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly through charitable trusts, limited liability companies and other trusts.
• Chief Administrative Officer; Frank Bisignano sold 3,000 shares for $35.40, generating $106,200 from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for JPMorgan Chase & Co. here.

2. MSC Industrial Direct Co. Inc. (MSM): $67.8

Director Mitchell Jacobson sold 132,860 shares of this metalworking and other industrial products company for $67.32, generating $8.9 million from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly through a trust.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for MSC Industrial Direct Co. Inc. here.

3. Miller Energy Resources, Inc. (MILL): $4.03

COO Deloy Miller sold 2,488,531 shares of this independent oil & gas company for $4.60, generating $11.5 million from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Miller Energy Resources, Inc. here.

4. Fastenal Company (FAST): $43.96

Director Robert A. Kierlin sold 100,000 shares of this industrial and construction materials retailer for $43.16, generating $4.3 million from the sale.

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

5. Bank of the Ozarks, Inc. (OZRK): $33.13

Shares of this regional bank were sold by 4 insiders:

• Director Linda D. Gleason sold 71,000 shares for $33.60, generating $2.4 million from the sale.  These shares were sold indirectly by Ms. Gleason's spouse.
• Director Robert L. Qualls sold 20,000 shares for $33.48, generating $669,660 from the sale. These shares were sold as a result of exercising options immediately prior to the sale.
• Vice Chairman & COO Mark D. Ross sold 16,392 shares for $33.11, generating $542,739 from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly through 401k plan.
• Chief Financial Officer & CAO Gregory L. Mckinney sold 4,600 shares for $34.35, generating $158,010 from the sale. These shares were sold as a result of exercising options immediately prior to the sale.

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

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