Huge Insider Buying in MGM and Salesforce

As the year begins to wind down, investors are looking to position themselves for 2026. In recent days, insiders, including beneficial owners, at Crescent Biopharma Inc. (NASDAQ: CBIO), MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM), and Salesforce Inc. (NYSE: CRM) have boosted their stakes in their companies in a big way. Though these were the most prominent insider purchases in that time, there were a number of other notable ones as well.

While insider buying is typically slower when markets are near all-time highs and during earnings-reporting season, it never seems to dry up altogether. These recent notable purchases attest to this. Let’s take a quick look at these transactions and others.

Is Insider Buying Important?

What does insider buying tell us?

A well-known adage reminds us that corporate insiders and 10% owners really only buy shares of a company because they believe the stock price will rise and they want to profit from it. Thus, insider buying can be an encouraging signal for potential investors. This is all the more so during times of uncertainty in the markets, and even when markets are near all-time highs.

Though the third-quarter earnings-reporting season is winding down, some insiders are still prohibited from buying or selling shares. Below are some of the most notable insider purchases that were reported recently, starting with the largest and most prominent.

MGM Resorts International

• Buyer(s): 10% owner IAC
• Total shares: almost 1.1 million
• Price per share: $35.99 to $36.81
• Total cost: almost $39.9 million

Media and internet giant IAC is investing in MGM Resorts for the significant growth potential of the online gaming and digital sports betting market. Its stake is up to more than 65.8 million shares. The stock is up more than 5% in the past week, and shares were last seen changing hands for more than the purchase price range above.

Year over year, the stock is up less than 3%, underperforming the broader markets. However, analysts have a $42.44 mean price target, meaning they see 13.9% upside in the coming 12 months. Twelve out of 22 analysts who cover the stock recommend buying shares. Citigroup downgraded the stock to Neutral from Buy last month.

Salesforce

• Buyer(s): a director
• Total shares: 96,000
• Price per share: $260.58
• Total cost: around $25.0 million

Salesforce posted better-than-expected third-quarter results due to strong performance driven by its AI-powered Agentforce solutions, and it raised its full-year revenue outlook. Investors were pleased, driving the share price up 13.5% since the report. Shares were last seen trading higher than the buyer’s purchase price.

Note that the stock is down 24.5% from a year ago. Analysts are optimistic, though. They have a consensus recommendation to buy shares, and their mean price target of $325.07 suggests there is 23.4% upside in the next 52 weeks. Morgan Stanley just reiterated its Overweight rating, but Citigroup maintained a Neutral rating, though it did raise its price target.

Also note that an officer recently exercised an option on over 134,000 shares and then sold them.

Crescent Biopharma

• Buyer(s): 10% owner Fairmount Funds Management
• Total shares: over 1.3 million
• Price per share: $13.41
• Total cost: more than $18.2 million

Crescent Biopharma has announced a strategic partnership with Kelun-Biotech Biopharmaceutical, and the purchase above was part of a private offering intended to raise $185 million. The purchase almost doubled the size of Fairmount’s stake.

Shares of the cancer-focused biopharmaceutical company are 20.6% higher than 90 days ago and was last seen trading for more than a dollar per share higher than the buyer’s purchase price. However, the share price is 48.8% lower year over year. Of seven analysts who cover the stock, all of them recommend buying shares. They anticipate 14.38% upside in the coming year to their consensus price target of $28.20.

Note that this buyer also bought Viridian Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: VRDN) and Zenas BioPharma Inc. (NASDAQ: ZBIO) shares earlier this fall.

And Other Insider Buying

These were not the only notable insider purchases of the past week. Here’s a quick look at some others.

Recently, some smaller insider buying was reported at Biglari, Ecolab, FS KKR Capital, Grindr, Linde, Norfolk Southern, and QuidelOrtho as well.

Top Insider Purchases in December Signal Market Confidence