For Priceline and HPQ Investors, Insider Selling a Concern

Insdier selling is usually a sign that a stock may have peaked in short term especially after a tremendious run without fundamentals. Priceline.com (PCLN) is such a company, the stock is trading all time high 1 week ago over $150 a piece. The stock has doubled from $70 in March. Insiders have been selling aggressively since then if you look at the following chart from Etrade statistics and SEC filing. Some insiders sold over $5M stocks in the last 2 weeks when the stock price hit all time high.

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Another stock that shows massive insider selling is the Hewlett-Packard (HPQ); insiders have been selling heavily since June 2009.


Disclosure: Author has no position in stocks mentioned above

Comments

[amanmyth:]

But hang on a second.... Regarding HPQ, these are all automatic sell orders based upon a pre-set value of option exercise. This could either be a condition when granted, or simply a target set by the individuals. Of course, some may have set the target recently as many assumed the market would peak with the nice recovery we have seen. If you look at the dates of Shane Robinson, he would in breach of SEC rules unless this was pre-set exercise price as the HP quiet period started around July 10th. You are pointing to three of eight executives at HP, and this is really an assumptive posting.

Aug 19 09:03 AM

[SivBum:]

If you looked back the past few quarters, there was no auto sells. Apparently, the auto sells come in only when hpq prices was hot. Also, the selling wasn't just 3 executives, go check out the entire YTD sells in yahoo or other financial sites.


On Aug 19 09:03 AM amanmyth wrote:

> But hang on a second.... Regarding HPQ, these are all automatic sell
> orders based upon a pre-set value of option exercise. This could
> either be a condition when granted, or simply a target set by the
> individuals. Of course, some may have set the target recently as
> many assumed the market would peak with the nice recovery we have
> seen. If you look at the dates of Shane Robinson, he would in breach
> of SEC rules unless this was pre-set exercise price as the HP quiet
> period started around July 10th. You are pointing to three of eight
> executives at HP, and this is really an assumptive posting.

Aug 19 10:55 AM

[thestock tr...:]

PCLN is on the high end statistically speaking based on the past 50 trading days which coincides with the insider selling. In addition, we are at the end of the summer travel season, I expect a pullback in the stock.

Aug 19 05:45 PM