Insider Sells First of Long Island's Stock

Teagle Walter C Iii filed a Form 4 with the SEC on Tuesday, December 8. The insider sold 4,985 shares of First of Long Island Inc FLIC at an average price of $18.00. After the transaction, the executive's stake in First of Long Island Inc. moved to 147,047 shares. Shares of First of Long Island moved lower by 0.2% from the previous closing price.

The Importance of Insider Transactions

While transactions from an insider shouldn't be used as the sole item to make an investment or trading decision, an insider buying or selling stock in their company can be a good added factor that leads to more conviction in a decision.

When an insider buys stock after an important sell off, that can indicate the insider's faith in the success of the organization. Henceforth, if the stock is bought at new highs, it might be because the insider feels that the stock is not overvalued. Insiders who sell stock at new lows could be anticipating some capitulation moment. If the insider sells at new highs, it could point to the intention to "take some profit" and "lock in a gain."

Important Transaction Codes

Investors prefer focusing on transactions which take place in the open market, indicated in the Form 4 with codes P for purchase and S for sale. An open-market transaction means the insider went into the market of their own volition and made an active decision about the potential path for a company and its stock moving forward.

Transaction codes besides P or S aren't relatively important as they are seldom tied to a decision by the executive. For example, transaction code A is indicative of an insider being forced to sell shares to attain compensation. Moreover, transaction code C indicates the conversion of an option.