Insider Buying at Baker Hughes, Pure-Play SNF REIT, and Car Rental Giant Hertz Global, Plus Insider Selling at 2 Companies

CEO of Linear Technology Discards Voluminous Amount of Shares

The man in charge of Linear Technology Corporation (NASDAQ:LLTC) discarded a great deal of shares this week, a sale that could be worth the attention of the investment community. Chief Executive Officer Lothar Maier liquidated 274,642 shares on Tuesday at prices ranging from $60.95 to $61.00 per share, cutting his holding to 215,652 shares.

When having a closer look at the company and its recent insider selling, this insider sale does not seem surprising after all. In late July, Analog Devices Inc. (NASDAQ:ADI) agreed to buy fellow chipmaker Linear Technology for a total consideration of approximately $14.8 billion. Hence, there aren’t any particular reasons Linear Technology’s CEO would want to hold onto his ownership stake any more. Under the terms of the agreement inked this summer, Linear Technology Corporation (NASDAQ:LLTC) shareholders are set to receive $46.00 per share in cash and 0.2321 shares of Analog Devices should the deal go through. Linear Technology had been viewed as one of the most attractive acquisition targets in the semiconductor industry even before the acquisition announcement, considering its high margins and engineering talent. Jim Simons’ Renaissance Technologies LLC was the owner of 8.71 million shares of Linear Technology Corporation (NASDAQ:LLTC) at the end of September.

Insiders at Rockwell Automation Sell Shares Near 52-Week High

Several insiders Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) also discarded some shares earlier this week. Keith D. Nosbusch, who stepped down as Rockwell Automation President and CEO earlier this year, sold 40,000 shares on Monday and 10,000 shares on Wednesday at prices that ranged from $132.00 to $133.37 per share. After the recent sales, Mr. Nosbusch currently holds a direct ownership stake of 379,896 shares. Moreover, John P. McDermott, Senior Vice President of Global Sales and Marketing, offloaded 11,117 shares on Monday at a price of $132.65 per share, as well as offered 2,249 shares as a gift. Following these transactions, Mr. McDermott owns an aggregate of 36,887 shares.

The shares of the self-proclaimed leader in industrial automation and information are trading near their 52-week high of slightly below $134 per share, which does explain the aforementioned insider selling to some extent. Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK), which makes factory automation systems, anticipates the first full-year increase in sales in three years, reflecting stabilizing demand in industries such as oil and gas that helped the company report better-than-expected revenue and earnings for the quarter that ended September 30. Rockwell Automation anticipates sales growth in the range of 1%-to-5% for its current fiscal year ending September 2017, with organic growth expected to fall in the range of 0%-to-4%. The shares of Rockwell Automation are up around 30% year-to-date. Cliff Asness’ AQR Capital Management added a 404,873-share stake in Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) to its portfolio during the September quarter.

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