Insider Sells Oaktree Specialty Lending Shares

A Form 4 filing filed with the SEC on Friday, November 27 showed that Tannenbaum Leonard M sold 169,659 shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending Inc OCSL at $5.48 on Tuesday, Nov 24, and sold 187,962 shares at $5.56 on Wednesday, Nov 25.The transaction moved the executive's stake in Oaktree Specialty Lending Inc. to 16,850,948 shares. Oaktree Specialty Lending was trading 0.4% lower 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.

Insiders buying stock after a notable sell off can indicate an insider's long-term belief in the success of the company; insiders buying stock at new highs can be an indication the exec doesn't feel the stock is overvalued. Conversely, insiders who are selling stock at new lows can potentially indicate some kind of capitulation moment. Insiders selling at new highs can indicate that exec wants 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.