Hot Newly-Public Company and Battered Propane Distributor Witness Insider Buying; Plus Other Insider Transactions

Board Member of Battered Propane Distributor Buys Shares on Price Weakness

One member of Ferrellgas Partners L.P. (NYSE:FGP)’s boardroom filed Wednesday to disclose the purchase of company shares. Board member David L. Starling purchased 10,300 shares on Tuesday through multiple transactions at prices ranging from $9.49 to $9.51 per share. Following the recent series of transactions, Mr. Starling currently holds an ownership stake of 14,300 shares.

The insider buying comes shortly after the second-largest retail marketer of propane in the United States posted a much larger-than-expected quarterly loss, which amounted to $668 million versus the net loss of $59 million recorded for the same period of the prior year. Moreover, President and CEO Stephen Warnbold announced his decision to step down, which, combined with the wider-than-expected net loss, sent Ferrellgas Partners L.P. (NYSE:FGP)’s shares plummeting. The shares of the propane distributor are 40% in the red thus far in 2016. Furthermore, the company also warned that the annual distribution rate could be reduced to $1 per unit from $2.05 to reduce its debt load and leverage ratio. Citadel Advisors LLC sold out its stake of 11,185 shares of Ferrellgas Partners L.P. (NYSE:FGP) during the second quarter.

Chairman of Newly-Public Company in Healthcare Space Purchases Shares

One member of Patheon NV (NYSE:PTHN)’s Board of Directors has been on a buying spree in the past several trading sessions. Paul S. Levy, appointed as Chairman of the company’s Board of Directors in March 2016, bought a 5,000-share block in each of the five trading sessions of the previous week at prices varying from $28.83 to $29.95 per share. The 25,000 shares are held by Great Point Ventures LLC, of which Mr. Levy is the sole manager. After the recent set of transactions, the Chairman’s firm currently owns 62,000 shares of Patheon.

The global provider of outsourced pharmaceutical development and manufacturing services completed its initial public offering in late July by offering 29.46 million shares at a public offering price of $21.00 per share. It is important to note that Patheon NV (NYSE:PTHN)’s share price has increased continuously since the IPO and the post-IPO share price has not gone below the initial IPO-price level at all. A little while ago, analysts at Wells Fargo initiated coverage on Patheon with an ‘Outperform’ rating and a valuation range of $31-to-$34, arguing that the company “can drive 20%+ EPS growth for several years by being levered to favorable trends, by driving operational efficiency, and by executing on prudent capital deployment.” Wells Fargo analysts also believe Patheon “benefits from a forward-thinking management team with proven experience executing transformative strategies.” Patheon’s shares are up 17% since the IPO.

The final page of this article will discuss fresh insider selling observed at two other companies.