Significant Insider Selling at Three Companies; Insider Buying at Cenveo Inc. (CVO) and UMH Properties Inc. (UMH)

According to insider trading data provided by CNBC, the overall volume of insider selling recorded in August reached the highest figure in the past 12 months. Insiders sold shares worth around $4.49 billion during the last month. This figure should not seem overly surprising for the investment community given that U.S. stock market benchmarks were hitting new all-time highs.

As a general rule, sales transactions are considered to be less informative than purchase transactions because insiders usually have various reasons to sell shares of their companies that may not have anything to do with future prospects. Most often, corporate insiders sell shares simply to adjust their portfolios or increase liquidity. The investment community is well aware that illegal insider trading involves using material non-public information as a basis for trade. And although illegal insider trading could play a positive role by enhancing stock market efficiency and helping firms compensate managers for their successful managerial decisions and efforts, most market participants have very negative views on the illegal kind of insider trading activity. Without going deeper into details, let’s have a look at a set of noteworthy insider transactions reported with the SEC on Thursday.

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Another Insider at Struggling Manufacturer of Print-Related Products Purchases Shares

Soon after Cenveo Inc. (NYSE:CVO)’s President and CEO purchased 13,800 shares last week, another corporate insider at the company bought some shares earlier this week. Board member Mark J. Griffin snapped up 1,000 shares on Wednesday at a price tag of $6.53 each, lifting his overall holding to 38,957 shares.

The diversified manufacturing company focused on printed-related products has lost 51% of its market capitalization in the past 12 months, which somewhat explains the recent spike in insider buying at the company. Print-related industries continue to remain highly competitive due to overcapacity and pricing pressures, which could put more weight Cenveo Inc. (NYSE:CVO)’s financial results in the foreseeable future. The company’s net sales for the second quarter decreased by $9.3 million year-over-year to $404 million. There were a mere six hedge funds from our system invested in Cenveo at the end of June, amassing 8% of the company’s total number of outstanding shares. Howard Guberman’s Gruss Asset Management was the owner of 1.10 million shares of Cenveo Inc. (NYSE:CVO) at the end of the second quarter.

The next two pages of this article will discuss noteworthy insider trading activity recorded at four other companies.

Board Member at New Jersey-headquartered REIT Buys Shares Despite Strong Stock Performance

One member of UMH Properties Inc. (NYSE:UMH)’s Board of Directors also purchases some shares this week. Independent Director James E. Mitchell acquired 3,000 shares on Thursday at a cost of $11.88 per share, a purchase that boosted his overall ownership of common stock to 191,844 units.

UMH Properties Inc. (NYSE:UMH) operates as a real estate investment trust focused on manufactured home communities, with the company’s primary business activities involving the lease of manufactured home spaces on an annual or month-to-month bases to residential manufactured home owners. The New Jersey-headquartered REIT has seen the value of its stock jump by 18% since the beginning of the year. Earlier this week, UMH Properties completed the $2.95 million-acquisition of two communities located in Ohio. The freshly-acquired communities are part of a five community-portfolio, with the acquisition of the remaining communities anticipated to close by the end of the year. Jim Simons’ Renaissance Technologies LLC owns 454,800 shares of UMH Properties Inc. (NYSE:UMH) as of the end of the second quarter.

CFO of Provider of Cloud-Based HCM Software Offloads Shares

A top-ranking executive at Paycom Software Inc. (NYSE:PAYC) discarded a sizable block of shares earlier this week. Craig E. Boelte, the company’s Chief Financial Officer since February 2006, sold 40,000 shares on Tuesday at prices varying from $51.04 to $51.42 per share. Mr. Boelte also offered 1,700 shares as a bona-fide gift on Monday. Following these transactions, the CFO currently owns 370,997 shares.

The shares of the provider of cloud-based human capital management (HCM) software are 36% in the green thus far in 2016. Paycom Software Inc. (NYSE:PAYC)’s total revenues for the second quarter were $73.88 million, up from $48.97 million recorded a year ago. The impressive increase in the company’s top line was mainly driven by a mix of factors, which include application enhancements, improvements in client training, as well as increased productivity among its sales representatives. Clint Carlson’s Carlson Capital LP has 573,450 shares of Paycom Software Inc. (NYSE:PAYC) among its holdings as of June 30.

The final page of the article will reveal noteworthy insider selling at two other companies.

CEO of Provider of Inbound Consumer Engagement Services Discards Shares

The man at the helm of Sykes Enterprises Incorporated (NASDAQ:SYKE) offloaded a large block of shares this week. President and Chief Executive Officer Charles E. Sykes liquidated 50,000 shares through multiple transactions on Thursday at a weighted average price of $29.19 per share. After the recent string of transactions, Mr. Sykes currently holds a stake of 255,776 shares.

The provider of outsourced customer contact management solutions and services in the business process outsourcing arena has seen its market value drop by 4% since the start of the year. In April, Sykes Enterprises Incorporated (NASDAQ:SYKE) completed the $207.9 million-acquisition of Clear Link Holdings LLC, an acquisition aimed at expanding the company’s suite of service offerings, as well as expanding the addressable market opportunity. Clearlink is an inbound demand generation and sales conversion platform serving numerous Fortune 500 business-to-consumer and business-to-business clients. Jim Simons’ Renaissance Technologies LLC had approximately 671,000 shares of Sykes Enterprises Incorporated (NASDAQ:SYKE) among its holdings at the end of the April-to-June period.

Cluster of Insider Selling at Equifax

Three different executives at Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) unloaded shares earlier this week, a cluster of insider selling that might catch the attention of the investment community. John T. Hartman, President of International at Equifax since November 2015, sold 9,909 shares on Wednesday at an average price of $131.78 per share, trimming his ownership to 13,427 shares. Paulino Do Rego Barros, President of U.S. Information Solutions, offloaded 5,205 shares on the same day for $132.00 each, cutting his entire stake to 10,786 shares. Last but not least, Rodolfo O. Ploder, President of Workforce Solutions, sold 100 shares for $131.99 each and 3,000 shares at $131.87 apiece on Monday. Following the two transactions, Mr. Ploder currently owns 43,936 shares.

The global provider of information solutions, employment and income verifications and human resources business process outsourcing services has seen its market value rise by 19% since early January. In late February, Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) completed the acquisition of Veda for a cash consideration of $1.7 billion. The acquisition broadened the acquirer’s geographic footprint, as Veda operates primarily in Australia and New Zealand. Ken Fisher’s Fisher Asset Management owned around 192,000 shares of Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) at the end of June.

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