Volatile Market Week Doesn’t Stop Insiders From Buying Stock

By Lee Jackson January 31, 2015 Updated January 31, 2015

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With January coming to an end, investors may be more than ready to see February. With all the major indexes likely to end the month in the red, and volatility spiking much higher than last year, a wary eye is starting to be cast at the market. One thing that bodes well for equity investors is the number of insiders that continue to add to their holdings.

We cover insider buying every week at 24/7 Wall St., and this past week saw some major insiders and 10% holders buy stock and increase their positions in some of the top companies on Wall Street.

Here are companies that saw insiders buying this past week.

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: ALNY) had a big insider buy stock on the heels of a large secondary offering from the company. Pharmaceutical giant Sanofi, which is already a 10% owner of the company, bought a block of 843,699 shares at prices that ranged from $93.20 to $95.00. The total purchase came to a staggering $79.8 million. The stock was trading at $93.83 at Friday’s close.

Bank of New York Mellon Corp. (NYSE: BK) had a director at the company make a large purchase of stock. The director purchased 273,000 shares at $36.60. The buy came to a tidy $10 million. Shares closed trading on Friday at $36.00.

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Oasis Petroleum Inc. (NYSE: OAS) also had a 10% institutional owner step in and buy shares this week. SPO Advisory Corp. bought a million shares at $13.20, for a total of $13.2 million. This is the second large buy for SPO in the past six weeks. The stock closed Friday at $13.44.

Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) disappointed on earnings and was sold off last week pretty hard. A director at the software giant stepped in and bought 23,612 shares of the stock at $42.30. The purchase came to $1 million. With shares ending the week at $40.40, the purchase may have been a touch early.

Agile Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: AGRX) was another biotech company that saw a 10% owner come in and purchase stock. Aisling Capital bought 811,966 shares at $5.85, for a total purchase of $4.8 million. The price was part of a private placement conducted by the company to raise $20 million. The timing on this could not have been any better, and it is very bullish for shareholders, as the stock spiked higher right after the offering. Agile shares closed trading Friday at $8.70.

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These companies also saw insider buying this past week: A.M. Castle & Co. Inc. (NYSE: CAS), Eastman Kodak Co. (NYSE: KODK), Energy Focus Inc. (NASDAQ: EFOI), Old Republic International Corp. (NYSE: ORI) and Versartis Inc. (NASDAQ: VSAR).