Sell/Buy Ratio: The insider Sell/Buy ratio is calculated by dividing the total insider sales in a given week by total insider purchases that week. The adjusted ratio for last dropped down to 10.2. In other words, insiders sold more than 10 times as much stock as they purchased. The Sell/Buy ratio this week compares favorably with the week prior when the ratio stood at 26.7. We are calculating an adjusted ratio by removing transactions by funds and companies and trying as best as possible only to retain information about insiders and 10% owners who are not funds or companies.

Insider Sell Buy Ratio May 11, 2012

Note: As mentioned in the first post in this series, certain industries have their preferred metrics such as same store sales for retailers, funds from operations (FFO) for REITs and revenue per available room (RevPAR) for hotels that provide a better basis for comparison than simple valuation metrics. However metrics like Price/Earnings, Price/Sales and Enterprise Value/EBITDA included below should provide a good starting point for analyzing the majority of stocks.

Notable Insider Buys:

1. Netflix, Inc. (NFLX): $77.38

Director Jay C. Hoag acquired 200,000 shares of Netflix, paying $72.55 per share for a total amount of $14.5 million.

Mr. Hoag is the founding member of venture capital firm Technology Crossover Partners, which manages $3.3 billion in assets. He has served as a director of Netflix since 1999 and has been a technology investor for over 29 years.

We wrote the following about the company last month when another director paid $85.05 for 6,000 shares of Netflix, “after years of heavy insider selling, we are seeing our first insider purchase after Netflix saw its stock drop precipitously over the last year. The bears had it right that higher content costs and competition in the streaming space will eventually hit Netflix’s margins. While this purchase might give the bulls some ammunition in the short-term, I am not convinced Netflix has hit bottom yet.”

The stock is down an additional 15% since then and is probably worth exploring further in light of Mr. Hoag’s purchase.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Netflix, Inc. here.

2. Cabela’s Inc. (CAB): $36.45

Director Reuben Mark acquired 40,000 shares of this outdoor sporting goods retailer, paying $36.17 per share for a total amount of $1.4 million. Mr. Mark increased his stake by 3.57% to 1,159,413 shares with this purchase.

Mr. Mark has served on Cabela’s board since 2004 and was the former CEO and Chairman of Colgate-Palmolive (CL). He is the only insider who has been periodically buying Cabela’s stock over the last two years as you can see from this page. At first blush it appears that Cabela’s has a lot of debt on its balance sheet but as of Q1 2012, the company has reclassified that debt to more accurately match it against the $2.9 billion in credit card loans it carries on the asset side of the balance sheet. Yahoo currently shows Cabela’s trading at 13 times EBITDA but once you make the balance sheet adjustment, the company is trading for less than 9 times EBITDA.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Cabela’s Inc. here.

3. Vocus Inc. (VOCS): $16.63

Shares of this marketing software company were acquired by 4 insiders:

• Chairman, CEO and President Richard E. Rudman acquired 60,000 shares, paying $15.99 per share for a total amount of $959,400. Mr. Rudman increased his stake by 11.53% to 580,185 shares with this purchase.
• EVP, CFO and Secretary Stephen A. Vintz acquired 15,000 shares, paying $15.99 per share for a total amount of $239,850. Mr. Vintz increased his stake by 15.19% to 113,772 shares with this purchase.
• Director Kevin J. Burns acquired 10,000 shares, paying $16.07 per share for a total amount of $160,700. Mr. Burns increased his stake by 39.06% to 35,602 shares with this purchase.
• EVP and COO William Raymond Wagner acquired 1,500 shares, paying $16.24 per share for a total amount of $24,360. Mr. Wagner increased his stake by 1.46% to 103,998 shares with this purchase.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Vocus Inc. here.

4. Quest Diagnostics Inc. (DGX): $57.21

President and CEO Stephen H. Rusckowski acquired 20,000 shares of this diagnostic testing and services company, paying $56.89 per share for a total amount of $1.1 million. Mr. Rusckowski increased his stake by 46.47% to 63,034 shares with this purchase.

This is a sizable purchase and the only purchase we have seen at Quest since we started collecting insider data. Mr. Rusckowski was appointed to the role of CEO at Quest last month and that might partially explain the purchase. The stock appears to be reasonably valued at under 8 times EBITDA with operating margins of 18%. Quest has about $3.77 billion in net debt on its balance sheet.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Quest Diagnostics Inc. here.

5. Opko Health, Inc. (OPK): $4.55

CEO & Chairman Phillip Frost M.D. acquired 190,000 shares of this medical devices and drug development company, paying $4.49 per share for a total amount of $852,425. These shares were purchased indirectly by Frost Gamma Investments Trust.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Opko Health, Inc. here.

You can view the full list of purchases from this Insider Buying page.

Notable Insider Sales:

1. Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc. (GMCR): $25.16

Shares of this specialty coffee company were sold by 2 insiders:

• Founder and Director Robert P. Stiller sold 5,000,000 shares for $24.68, generating $123.4 million from the sale.
• Director William D. Davis sold 548,000 shares for $25.28, generating $13.9 million from the sale.

These were controversial sales as both sales listed margin calls as the reason for these sales and the board of Green Mountain reacted by restricting the roles of both members without actually removing them from the board. As you can see from this page, Mr. Stiller has been selling even as the stock dropped from a peak of over $111 last fall to current levels.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc. here.

2. MAKO Surgical Corp. (MAKO): $23.2

Director John Savarese sold 1,256,903 shares of this medical devices company for $25.23, generating $31.7 million from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly by Montreux Equity Partners.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for MAKO Surgical Corp. here.

3. Rackspace Hosting, Inc. (RAX): $52.36

Shares of this server and cloud hosting company were sold by 2 insiders:

• Chairman of the Board Graham M. Weston sold 300,000 shares for $52.43, generating $15.7 million from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly by Wittington America, Ltd.
• MD, International Taylor Rhodes sold 2,738 shares for $52.06, generating $142,537 from the sale. 2,148 of these shares were sold as a result of exercising options immediately prior to the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Rackspace Hosting, Inc. here.

4. PVH Corp. (PVH): $81.23

CEO of Tommy Hilfiger Fred Gehring sold 175,292 shares of this apparel company for $83.59, generating $14.7 million from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly By Elmira 5 B.V.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for PVH Corp. here.

5. Cerner Corporation (CERN): $79.92 Shares of this healthcare information services provider were sold by 3 insiders:

• Vice Chairman Clifford W. Illig sold 120,000 shares for $81.56, generating $9.8 million from the sale.
• Director William B. Neaves sold 22,400 shares for $80.38, generating $1.8 million from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly through a trust.
• Chairman, CEO & President Neal L. Patterson sold 20,000 shares for $80.59, generating $1.6 million from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Cerner Corporation here.

You can view the full list of sales from this Insider Sales page.

Sell/Buy Ratio: The insider Sell/Buy ratio is calculated by dividing the total insider sales in a given week by total insider purchases that week. The adjusted ratio for last dropped down to 26.7. In other words, insiders sold almost 27 times as much stock as they purchased. The Sell/Buy ratio this week compares favorably with the week prior when the ratio stood at 174. We are calculating an adjusted ratio by removing transactions by funds and companies and trying as best as possible only to retain information about insiders and 10% owners who are not funds or companies.

We wrote the following about the big spike in the ratio last week,

“Interestingly the last time the ratio was this high was almost a year ago on April 29, 2011 when the ratio spiked to 186.8. The S&P 500 dropped for six consecutive weeks from 1363.61 to 1270.98 following that spike.”

The S&P 500 registered a loss of 2.44% last week and if Friday’s close is any indication, we might continue to see weakness ahead.

Insider Sell Buy Ratio May 4, 2012

Note: As mentioned in the first post in this series, certain industries have their preferred metrics such as same store sales for retailers, funds from operations (FFO) for REITs and revenue per available room (RevPAR) for hotels that provide a better basis for comparison than simple valuation metrics. However metrics like Price/Earnings, Price/Sales and Enterprise Value/EBITDA included below should provide a good starting point for analyzing the majority of stocks.

Notable Insider Buys:

1. The Coca-Cola Company (KO): $77

Shares of Coca-Cola were acquired by 2 insiders:

• Director Barry Diller acquired 264,000 shares, paying $76.98 per share for a total amount of $20.3 million. These shares were purchased indirectly through a trust.
• Director Evan G. Greenberg acquired 6,507 shares, paying $76.75 per share for a total amount of $499,400. Mr. Greenberg increased his stake by 86.51% to 14,029 shares with this purchase.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for The Coca-Cola Company here.

2. Titan International Inc. (TWI): $27.56

Director Richard M. Cashin Jr. acquired 350,000 shares of this tires and wheels manufacturer, paying $28.69 per share for a total amount of $10.04 million. Mr. Cashin increased his stake by 81.45% to 779,693 shares with this purchase.

Mr. Cashin has served as an independent director of Titan since 1994 and according to his profile, he is “Managing Partner of One Equity Partners LLC, which manages multi-billion dollar investments and commitments in direct private equity transactions for JP Morgan, where he is a member of the Executive Committee.”

Titan manufacturer tires, wheels and other products for agricultural, forestry, construction and off-road vehicles. The company has seen tremendous revenue and earnings growth both on a year-over-year basis as well as on a sequential quarter basis. Titan reported revenue of $1.49 billion for the full year 2011, representing growth of 68.6% when compared to revenue of $881.6 million in 2010. For the first quarter of 2012, the company reported revenue of $463.1 million, up 65% YoY and 15% over Q4 2011.

Improving margins helped the company post a 118% increase in operating income of $58.7 million. Prospects for future growth also look strong as the company is forecasting a revenue “run rate” of between $3 to $4 billion by the end of 2013. The company does have $188.6 million of debt net of cash on its balance sheet but all its debt is long-term and the balance sheet appears to be strong. Net margins of 7.65% are not very high but the margin trend has been higher. The company trades for a very reasonable forward P/E of 9.57, EV/EBITDA ratio of 6.36 and a PEG of just 0.35.

Voluntary Disclosure: I have a long position in Titan International in my personal portfolio.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Titan International Inc. here.

3. Akamai Technologies, Inc. (AKAM): $32.56

Chief Scientist Thomson F. Leighton acquired 100,000 shares of this internet information provider, paying $33.14 per share for a total amount of $3.3 million. These shares were purchased indirectly through a trust.

After a solid rally that saw the stock nearly double since last Fall, the stock gave back some of those gains over the last few trading session, dropping from $38.75 to current levels. While Q1 2012 revenue of $319 million grew 16% year-over-year and came in better than expected, earnings of 41 cents per share were down 15% on account of taxes and acquisition costs. Second quarter earnings guidance of 36 to 38 cents was also below expectations of 39 cents per share.

The company has managed to maintain its margins and grow the top line despite strong competition from companies like Level 3 Communications (LVLT). With an exceptionally strong balance sheet and the stock trading at 10.9 times EBITDA, the company is worth keeping on your radar.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Akamai Technologies, Inc. here.

4. Hess Corporation (HES): $50.94

Shares of this integrated energy company were acquired by 2 insiders:

• Chairman of the Board and CEO John B. Hess acquired 48,000 shares, paying $52.00 per share for a total amount of $2.5 million. Mr. Hess increased his stake by 16.82% to 333,435 shares with this purchase.
• Director John H. Mullin III acquired 10,000 shares, paying $53.63 per share for a total amount of $536,257. Mr. Mullin increased his stake by 37.34% to 36,781 shares with this purchase.

We wrote about Hess in January following a large $4.9 million insider purchase by the CEO and followed that up with a weekly focus article that you can read here. The stock was trading at $60.38 back then and we decided to add the company to our watch list instead of starting a position, primarily on account of some near-term challenges the company currently faces as discussed in the article.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Hess Corporation here.

5. Opko Health, Inc. (OPK): $4.47

CEO & Chairman Phillip Frost M.D. acquired 257,000 shares of this medical devices and drug development company, paying $4.75 per share for a total amount of $1.2 million. These shares were purchased indirectly by Frost Gamma Investments Trust.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Opko Health, Inc. here.

You can view the full list of purchases from this Insider Buying page.

Notable Insider Sales:

1. Microsoft Corporation (MSFT): $30.98

Shares of Microsoft were sold by 2 insiders:

• Founder Bill Gates sold 8 million shares for $32.07, generating $256.5 million from the sale.
• Chief Accounting Officer Frank H. Brod sold 5,000 shares for $32.01, generating $160,025 from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Microsoft Corporation here.

2. Apple Inc. (AAPL): $565.25

Shares of Apple were sold by 2 insiders:

• Senior Vice President Scott J. Forstall sold 64,151 shares for $603.77, generating $38.7 million from the sale.
• Director Millard S. Drexler sold 40,000 shares for $603.52, generating $24.1 million from the sale. These shares were sold as a result of exercising options immediately prior to the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Apple Inc. here.

3. Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (REGN): $131.4

Shares of this biotech company were sold by 5 insiders:

• President & CEO Leonard S. Schleifer sold 100,000 shares for $134.83, generating $13.5 million from the sale.
• Chief Scientific Officer and President, Regeneron Research Laboratories George Yancopoulos sold 33,165 shares for $134.83, generating $4.5 million from the sale.
• SVP Finance and CFO Murray A. Goldberg sold 31,587 shares for $135.40, generating $4.3 million from the sale. These shares were sold as a result of exercising options immediately prior to the sale.
• SVP & General Manager Industrial Operations Daniel Van Plew sold 14,442 shares for $136.38, generating $1.97 million from the sale. These shares were sold as a result of exercising options immediately prior to the sale.
• VP Strategy and Investor Relatations Michael S. Aberman sold 6,162 shares for $134.81, generating $830,683 from the sale. These shares were sold as a result of exercising options immediately prior to the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. here.

4. Toll Brothers Inc. (TOL): $25.7

Shares of this luxury home builder were sold by 2 insiders:

• Executive Chairman Robert I. Toll sold 938,183 shares for $26.41, generating $24.8 million from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly through a GRAT.
• Chief Accounting Officer Joseph R. Sicree sold 7,200 shares for $26.75, generating $192,600 from the sale. These shares were sold as a result of exercising options immediately prior to the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Toll Brothers Inc. here.

5. Stericycle, Inc. (SRCL): $84.62

Shares of this medical waste management company were sold by 3 insiders:

• Chairman & CEO Mark C. Miller sold 199,293 shares for $87.46, generating $17.4 million from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly through a trust.
• CFO Frank J.M. ten Brink sold 774 shares for $87.91, generating $68,044 from the sale.
• EVP & COO Richard T. Kogler sold 773 shares for $87.91, generating $67,956 from the sale. These shares were sold as a result of exercising options immediately prior to the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Stericycle, Inc. here.

You can view the full list of sales from this Insider Sales page.

Sell/Buy Ratio: The insider Sell/Buy ratio is calculated by dividing the total insider sales in a given week by total insider purchases that week. The adjusted ratio for last week shot up to 174.2. In other words, insiders sold more than 174 times as much stock as they purchased. The Sell/Buy ratio this week compares unfavorably with the week prior when the ratio stood at 25.1. Part of this big jump has to do with Bill Gates selling $385.4 million worth of Microsoft stock to most likely fund his foundation buy even excluding that sale, the ratio would have been 125.5.

Interestingly the last time the ratio was this high was almost a year ago on April 29, 2011 when the ratio spiked to 186.8. The S&P 500 dropped for six consecutive weeks from 1363.61 to 1270.98 following that spike. We are calculating an adjusted ratio by removing transactions by funds and companies and trying as best as possible only to retain information about insiders and 10% owners who are not funds or companies.

Insider Sell Buy Ratio April 27, 2012

Note: As mentioned in the first post in this series, certain industries have their preferred metrics such as same store sales for retailers, funds from operations (FFO) for REITs and revenue per available room (RevPAR) for hotels that provide a better basis for comparison than simple valuation metrics. However metrics like Price/Earnings, Price/Sales and Enterprise Value/EBITDA included below should provide a good starting point for analyzing the majority of stocks.

Notable Insider Buys:

1. Opko Health, Inc. (OPK): $4.81

CEO & Chairman Phillip Frost M.D. acquired 200,000 shares of this medical devices and drug development company, paying $4.85 per share for a total amount of $970,271. These shares were purchased indirectly by Frost Gamma Investments Trust.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Opko Health, Inc. here.

2. American Spectrum Realty Inc. (AQQ): $5.6

CEO & President William J. Carden acquired 214,340 shares of this commercial real estate company, paying $4.29 per share for a total amount of $919,519. Mr. Carden increased his stake by 35.24% to 822,594 shares with this purchase.

This insider purchase inspired some interest on Monday, April 23, 2012 with an 8% jump in the stock price on a down day. Average trading volume is very low for the company and only 500 shares changed hands the Friday before last, the day of the purchase according to this filing. Quite clearly this was not an open market purchase but I did not find anything in the footnotes or in a press release indicating otherwise.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for American Spectrum Realty Inc. here.

3. Life Time Fitness Inc. (LTM): $46.98

Chairman, President and CEO Bahram Akradi acquired 16,905 shares of this health club operator, paying $44.07 per share for a total amount of $745,008. Mr. Akradi increased his stake by 0.71% to 2,398,296 shares with this purchase.

For a health club and nutritional products company, Life Time Fitness appears to be doing very well with operating margins of 17.6% and profit margins of 9.36%. Both revenue and profits have been growing as the company expanded its reach through the recession with 102 locations in 26 markets. Life Time trades at a resonable valuation of 8.86 times EBITDA and carries $678 million in net debt on its balance sheet.

This purchase follows a couple of small purchases by two directors last summer. A number of other insiders including the CFO have been selling shares as you can see from this page.

Voluntary Disclosure: I hold a long position in Life Time in my trading portfolio.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Life Time Fitness Inc. here.

4. Basic Energy Services, Inc. (BAS): $14.37

Director Steven A. Webster acquired 52,370 shares of this oil services company, paying $13.50 per share for a total amount of $706,995 and also exercised options for 55,000 shares. Mr. Webster increased his stake by 10.83% to 536,070 shares with this purchase.

This is an interesting company that managed to swing from a loss in 2010 to a profit in 2011 as the business scaled to revenue of over $1.24 billion from $728 million in 2010. The company trades for just 3.56 times EBITDA with operating margins of 14.85%. Net margin of 6.23% is lower thanks in part to the high interest expense on the $783 million in debt the company carries on its balance sheet.

Another director also picked up 21,000 shares in two transactions last December and in March of this year. Mr. Webster picked up 100,000 shares last Fall at much higher prices as you can see from this page. The stock is off significantly since last July when it reached an intra-day high of $37.79. The fact that the company missed earnings estimates in three out of the last four quarters partially explains the drop in the stock price.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Basic Energy Services, Inc. here.

5. Netflix, Inc. (NFLX): $83.74

Director Richard N. Barton acquired 6,000 shares of Netflix, paying $85.05 per share for a total amount of $510,300. Mr. Barton increased his stake by 1749.27% to 6,343 shares with this purchase.

As I tweeted earlier this week, after years of heavy insider selling, we are seeing the first insider purchase at Netflix after the stock dropped precipitously over the last year. The bears had it right that higher content costs and competition in the streaming space will eventually hit Netflix’s margins.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Netflix, Inc. here.

You can view the full list of purchases from this Insider Buying page.

Notable Insider Sales:

1. Microsoft Corporation (MSFT): $31.98

Founder Bill Gates sold 12 million shares of Microsoft for $32.12, generating $385.4 million from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Microsoft Corporation here.

2. The Charles Schwab Corporation (SCHW): $14.32

Chairman Charles R. Schwab sold 4 million shares of this investment company for $13.87, generating $55.5 million from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly through a trust.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for The Charles Schwab Corporation here.

3. Western Refining, Inc. (WNR): $18.98

Chairman of the Board, Executive Chair Paul L. Foster sold 300,000 shares of this this crude oil refining company for $18.29, generating $5.5 million from the sale. 100,000 of these shares were sold indirectly by Franklin Mountain Investments Limited Partnership.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Western Refining, Inc. here.

4. Bank of the Ozarks, Inc. (OZRK): $31.43

Shares of this regional bank were sold by 2 insiders:

• Director Linda D. Gleason sold 156,400 shares for $31.24, generating $4.9 million from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly by Ms. Gleason’s spouse.
• Chief Credit Officer Darrel Russell sold 3,400 shares for $31.50, generating $107,100 from the sale. These shares were sold as a result of exercising options immediately prior to the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Bank of the Ozarks, Inc. here.

5. Marriott International, Inc. (MAR): $39.53

Shares of this lodging company were sold by 2 insiders:

• Chairman of the Board J. W. Marriott Jr. sold 56,000 shares for $38.30, generating $2.1 million from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly through a trust.
• President and Managing Director of European Lodging Amy McPherson sold 51,850 shares for $38.67, generating $2 million from the sale. 36,056 of these shares were sold as a result of exercising options immediately prior to the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Marriott International, Inc. here.

You can view the full list of sales from this Insider Sales page.

Sell/Buy Ratio: The insider Sell/Buy ratio is calculated by dividing the total insider sales in a given week by total insider purchases that week. The adjusted ratio for last week went up to 25.1. In other words, insiders sold more than 25 times as much stock as they purchased. The Sell/Buy ratio this week compares unfavorably with the week prior when the ratio stood at 10.9. We are calculating an adjusted ratio by removing transactions by funds and companies and trying as best as possible only to retain information about insiders and 10% owners who are not funds or companies.

Insider Sell Buy Ratio April 20, 2012

Note: As mentioned in the first post in this series, certain industries have their preferred metrics such as same store sales for retailers, funds from operations (FFO) for REITs and revenue per available room (RevPAR) for hotels that provide a better basis for comparison than simple valuation metrics. However metrics like Price/Earnings, Price/Sales and Enterprise Value/EBITDA included below should provide a good starting point for analyzing the majority of stocks.

Notable Insider Buys:

1. Opko Health, Inc. (OPK): $4.99

CEO & Chairman Phillip Frost M.D. acquired 160,000 shares of this medical devices and drug development company, paying $4.51 per share for a total amount of $721,414. These shares were purchased indirectly by Frost Gamma Investments Trust.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Opko Health, Inc. here.

2. EV Energy Partners LP (EVEP): $63.36

Shares of this oil and gas company were acquired by 2 insiders:

• Executive Chairman of the Board John B. Walker acquired 10,000 shares, paying $59.02 per share for a total amount of $590,200. These shares were purchased indirectly by John B. and Lisa A. Walker, and other family members.
• President and CEO Mark A. Houser acquired 1,500 shares, paying $62.64 per share for a total amount of $93,960. These shares were purchased indirectly by DSEA II, LP.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for EV Energy Partners LP here.

3. Winmark Corp. (WINA): $51.98

Chairman & CEO John L. Morgan acquired 10,000 shares of this retail franchise company, paying $52.43 per share for a total amount of $524,300. Mr. Morgan increased his stake by 0.60% to 1,669,678 shares with this purchase.

Voluntary Disclosure: I hold a long position in Winmark in my long-term portfolio.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Winmark Corp. here.

4. magicJack VocalTec Ltd. (CALL): $23.37

Director Gerald T. Vento acquired 22,000 shares of this voice-over-IP telecommunication services provider, paying $23.07 per share for a total amount of $507,602. Mr. Vento increased his stake by 26.99% to 103,500 shares with this purchase.

This Israel based company has managed to narrow net losses over the last few years even as total revenue declined in 2011. Cash flow from operations is positive and continues to grow. The company recently forecast revenue growth of 20-30% in 2013 and expects to earn between $2 to $2.50 per share before “extraordinary items”.

The stock has had a wild ride by going up nearly 200% this year before giving back some of those gains in March and April.

Voluntary Disclosure: I hold a long position in magicJack VocalTec in my trading portfolio.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for magicJack VocalTec Ltd. here.

5. Valhi, Inc. (VHI): $52.93

Chairman of the Board Harold C. Simmons acquired 7,851 shares of this chemicals and toxic waste management company, paying $52.02 per share for a total amount of $408,416. Mr. Simmons increased his stake by 1.81% to 440,532 shares with this purchase.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Valhi, Inc. here.

You can view the full list of purchases from this Insider Buying page.

Notable Insider Sales:

1. DDI Corp. (DDIC): $12.95

Director Bryant R. Riley sold 437,735 shares of this printed circuit boards company for $12.97, generating $5.7 million from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly through various trusts and entities.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for DDI Corp. here.

2. Fastenal Company (FAST): $48.21

Director Robert A. Kierlin sold 100,000 shares of this industrial and construction materials company for $48.56, generating $4.9 million from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Fastenal Company here.

3. The TJX Companies, Inc. (TJX): $41.02

Director Bernard Cammarata sold 100,000 shares of this discount retailer for $40.00, generating $4 million from the sale.

We have seen active insider selling in both TJX and competitor Ross Stores (ROST).

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for The TJX Companies, Inc. here.

4. Limited Brands, Inc. (LTD): $49.26

EVP & Chief Admin Officer Martyn R. Redgrave sold 67,250 shares of this apparel chain for $47.91, generating $3.2 million from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Limited Brands, Inc. here.

5. Comcast Corporation (CMCSA): $29.45

Chairman of Board, President & CEO Brian L. Roberts sold 105,495 shares of this entertainment and telecommunications provider for $29.87, generating $3.2 million from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Comcast Corporation here.

You can view the full list of sales from this Insider Sales page.

Sell/Buy Ratio: The insider Sell/Buy ratio is calculated by dividing the total insider sales in a given week by total insider purchases that week. The adjusted ratio for last week dropped down to 10.9. In other words, insiders sold almost 11 times as much stock as they purchased. The Sell/Buy ratio this week compares favorably with the week prior when the ratio stood at 50.3. We are calculating an adjusted ratio by removing transactions by funds and companies and trying as best as possible only to retain information about insiders and 10% owners who are not funds or companies.

Insider Sell Buy Ratio April 13, 2012

Note: As mentioned in the first post in this series, certain industries have their preferred metrics such as same store sales for retailers, funds from operations (FFO) for REITs and revenue per available room (RevPAR) for hotels that provide a better basis for comparison than simple valuation metrics. However metrics like Price/Earnings, Price/Sales and Enterprise Value/EBITDA included below should provide a good starting point for analyzing the majority of stocks.

Notable Insider Buys:

1. Opko Health, Inc. (OPK): $4.38

CEO & Chairman Phillip Frost M.D. acquired 390,000 shares of this medical devices and drug development company, paying $4.53 per share for a total amount of $1.8 million. These shares were purchased indirectly by Frost Gamma Investments Trust.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Opko Health, Inc. here.

2. Winmark Corp. (WINA): $53.95

Chairman & CEO John L. Morgan acquired 10,000 shares of this retail franchise company, paying $54.11 per share for a total amount of $541,100. Mr. Morgan increased his stake by 0.61% to 1,659,678 shares with this purchase.

Voluntary Disclosure: I hold a third of the position in Winmark that I started in January 2011 following a string of insider purchases by Mr. Morgan.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Winmark Corp. here.

3. Valhi, Inc. (VHI): $51.35

Chairman of the Board Harold C. Simmons acquired 10,000 shares of this chemicals and toxic waste management company, paying $49.43 per share for a total amount of $494,265. Mr. Simmons increased his stake by 2.37% to 432,681 shares with this purchase.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Valhi, Inc. here.

4. Greenbrier Companies (GBX): $17.82

Director Bruce C. Ward acquired 25,000 shares of this Oregon based railroad freight car equipment company, paying $18.05 per share for a total amount of $451,289. Mr. Ward increased his stake by 93.56% to 51,722 shares with this purchase.

Voluntary Disclosure: I hold a long position in Greenbrier.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Greenbrier Companies here.

5. AngioDynamics Inc. (ANGO): $11.87

Shares of this medical devices company were acquired by 4 insiders:

• Director Vincent Bucci acquired 6,000 shares, paying $11.81 per share for a total amount of $70,876. Mr. Bucci increased his stake by 23.21% to 31,846 shares with this purchase. 4,000 of these shares were purchased indirectly by Mr. Bucci’s daughter.
• President and CEO Joseph Devivo acquired 5,000 shares, paying $11.82 per share for a total amount of $59,094. Mr. Devivo increased his stake by 16.13% to 36,000 shares with this purchase.
• Director Kevin J. Gould acquired 2,700 shares, paying $11.72 per share for a total amount of $31,636.
• SVP, Business Development Matthew C. Kapusta acquired 1,000 shares, paying $11.40 per share for a total amount of $11,397. Mr. Kapusta increased his stake by 6.67% to 16,000 shares with this purchase.

This is an interesting company that trades for just 6 times EBITDA and had $130 million in net cash on its balance sheet. The company agreed to acquire privately held Navilyst Medical in a cash plus stock deal valued at $372 million in February. Following this acquisition, the company will have at least $50 million in cash and investments and $150 million in debt.

Insiders have purchased shares several times since the start of this year as you can see from this page. This cluster of insider purchases generated some interest and helped the stock rebound from a fresh 52 week low it had set on Tuesday, April 10, 2012.

Voluntary Disclosure: I hold a long position in AngioDynamics.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for AngioDynamics Inc. here.

You can view the full list of purchases from this Insider Buying page.

Notable Insider Sales:

1. Dell Inc. (DELL): $16.11

Shares of Dell were sold by 2 insiders:

• Director Thomas Luce III sold 4,420 shares for $1619.00, generating $7.2 million from the sale.
• Senior Vice President Karen H. Quintos sold 14,933 shares for $16.46, generating $245,797 from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Dell Inc. here.

2. Yahoo! Inc. (YHOO): $14.87

Chief Yahoo David Filo sold 168,500 shares of this internet media company for $15.04, generating $2.5 million from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly through a trust.

Voluntary Disclosure: I hold a long position in Yahoo.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Yahoo! Inc. here.

3. Conns Inc. (CONN): $17.61

Shares of this specialty retailer of home appliances were sold by 3 insiders:

• President – Retail Division David W. Trahan sold 30,000 shares for $18.89, generating $566,792 from the sale.
• 10% Owner Warren A. Stephens sold 29,600 shares for $17.52, generating $518,592 from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly through a trust.
• Director Douglas H. Martin sold 20,000 shares for $18.48, generating $369,682 from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Conns Inc. here.

4. Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. (LGF): $12.58

Shares of this movie production and distribution company were sold by 3 insiders:

• Co-COO Steve Beeks sold 70,000 shares for $12.85, generating $899,500 from the sale.
• EVP and General Counsel Wayne Levin sold 60,000 shares for $12.51, generating $750,600 from the sale.
• Chief Financial Officer James Keegan sold 25,000 shares for $12.51, generating $312,750 from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. here.

5. The J. M. Smucker Company (SJM): $79.25

Shares of this packaged food products company were sold by 3 insiders:

• President Mark T. Smucker sold 20,000 shares for $80.60, generating $1.6 million from the sale.
• CFO Mark R. Belgya sold 1,000 shares for $80.68, generating $80,680 from the sale.
• Vice President John W. Denman sold 150 shares for $80.68, generating $12,102 from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for The J. M. Smucker Company here.

You can view the full list of sales from this Insider Sales page.

Sell/Buy Ratio: The insider Sell/Buy ratio is calculated by dividing the total insider sales in a given week by total insider purchases that week. The adjusted ratio for last week dropped down to 50.3. In other words, insiders sold more than 50 times as much stock as they purchased. The Sell/Buy ratio this week compares favorably with the week prior when the ratio stood at 71.1. We are calculating an adjusted ratio by removing transactions by funds and companies and trying as best as possible only to retain information about insiders and 10% owners who are not funds or companies.

Insider Sell Buy Ratio April 6, 2012

Note: As mentioned in the first post in this series, certain industries have their preferred metrics such as same store sales for retailers, funds from operations (FFO) for REITs and revenue per available room (RevPAR) for hotels that provide a better basis for comparison than simple valuation metrics. However metrics like Price/Earnings, Price/Sales and Enterprise Value/EBITDA included below should provide a good starting point for analyzing the majority of stocks.

Notable Insider Buys:

1. Opko Health, Inc. (OPK): $4.75

CEO & Chairman Phillip Frost M.D. acquired 95,000 shares of this medical devices and drug development company, paying $4.74 per share for a total amount of $450,054. These shares were purchased indirectly by Frost Gamma Investments Trust.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Opko Health, Inc. here.

2. Vera Bradley, Inc. (VRA): $31.04

Shares of this fashion accessories company were acquired by 2 insiders:

• Chief Executive Officer Michael C. Ray acquired 10,000 shares, paying $30.44 per share for a total amount of $304,420. Mr. Ray increased his stake by 1.03% to 981,343 shares with this purchase.
• Director Stephen J. Hackman acquired 1,000 shares, paying $29.90 per share for a total amount of $29,900. Mr. Hackman increased his stake by 28.47% to 4,513 shares with this purchase.

These purchases follow a couple of small purchases by the controller and a director last week. The stock declined mid-march after the company forecast earnings of 27 to 29 cents for the next quarter, which was below analysts expectations of 30 cents per share. The company operates a small number of stores and mostly sells its products through 3,300 retailers. Their reasonably priced products appear to have struck a chord with consumers as the company has seen impressive revenue and earnings growth over the last three years. Both revenue and earnings for the full fiscal year ended January 2012 were up 25%.

The company has been paying down debt and has a strong balance sheet with current assets far exceeding total liabilities. With revenue growth expected to come in at 18% for the current fiscal year and operating margins of 20%, a forward P/E of 15 and EV/EBITDA of 12 look reasonable for the company. A couple of red flags to watch out for include claims of channel stuffing by certain investors and a product line that looks odd (everything is floral) to my uncultured male eyes based on a quick twirl around their website.

Voluntary Disclosure: I picked up some shares for my portfolio following these purchases on Monday, April 2, 2012.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Vera Bradley, Inc. here.

3. Matador Resources Company (MTDR): $11.39

Chairman, CEO and President Joseph WM. Foran acquired 24,000 shares of this independent energy company, paying $11.50 per share for a total amount of $276,000. Mr. Foran increased his stake by 24.00% to 124,000 shares with this purchase.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Matador Resources Company here.

4. Regional Management Corp. (RM): $16.05

Director Alvaro G. de Molina acquired 10,000 shares of this company that provides personal loans, paying $17.50 per share for a total amount of $175,000.

Regional Management went public last week at $15/share and it is a little odd to see an insider purchase shares on the open market shortly thereafter. Mr. de Molina was the former CFO of Bank of America for a period of 14 months and later served as the CEO of GMAC (now know as Ally bank) for 20 months.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Regional Management Corp. here.

5. Sealy Corporation (ZZ): $2.05

Director Richard Roedel acquired 72,600 shares of this mattress manufacturer, paying $2.04 per share for a total amount of $148,265. Mr. Roedel increased his stake by 644.93% to 83,857 shares with this purchase.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Sealy Corporation here.

You can view the full list of purchases from this Insider Buying page.

Notable Insider Sales:

1. Toll Brothers Inc. (TOL): $23.15

Shares of this luxury home builder were sold by 2 insiders:

• Executive Chairman Robert Toll I sold 1,059,817 shares for $24.61, generating $26.1 million from the sale. 500,000 of these shares were sold as a result of exercising options immediately  prior to the sale and 61,817 of these shares were sold indirectly through a GRAT.
• Director Bruce E. Toll sold 100,000 shares for $24.23, generating $2.4 million from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Toll Brothers Inc. here.

2. Seagate Technology PLC (STX): $25.72

Shares of this data storage company were sold by 2 insiders:

• Chairman, President and CEO Stephen J. Luczo sold 520,000 shares for $27.30, generating $14.2 million from the sale. 500,000 of these shares were sold indirectly through a trust and 20,000 shares were sold as a result of exercising options immediately prior to the sale.
• EVP,General Counsel, CAO Kenneth M. Massaroni sold 5,000 shares for $27.01, generating $135,050 from the sale. These shares were sold as a result of exercising options immediately prior to the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Seagate Technology PLC here.

3. Limited Brands, Inc. (LTD): $48.25

Shares of this apparel chain were sold by 2 insiders:

• CEO/P VS Megabrand Int App Group Sharen J. Turney sold 188,000 shares for $48.98, generating $9.2 million from the sale.
• President Global Sourcing & Logistics Charles McGuigan sold 31,286 shares for $48.61, generating $1.5 million from the sale. 20,228 of these shares were sold as a result of exercising options immediately prior to the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Limited Brands, Inc. here.

4. Jabil Circuit Inc. (JBL): $24.2

Shares of this electronic manufacturing services provider were sold by 5 insiders:

• President & CEO Timothy L. Main sold 115,600 shares for $25.25, generating $2.9 million from the sale. These shares were sold as a result of exercising options immediately prior to the sale.
• Director William D. Morean sold 115,300 shares for $25.24, generating $2,910,213 from the sale. 74,600 of these shares were sold indirectly through William D. Morean Trust and 2,300 of these shares were sold indirectly by the Eagle’s Wing Foundation.
• EVP, CEO, Manufacturing Services William D. Muir sold 20,000 shares for $25.03, generating $500,668 from the sale.
• Chief Operating Officer Mark T. Mondello sold 15,000 shares for $25.26, generating $378,869 from the sale.
• Chief Financial Officer Forbes I. Alexander sold 9,665 shares for $25.26, generating $244,125 from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Jabil Circuit Inc. here.

5. Coffee Holding Co.Inc. (JVA): $9.24

Shares of this branded and private label coffee manufacturer were sold by 2 insiders:

• Vice President David Gordon sold 310,000 shares for $9.82, generating $3.04 million from the sale. 60,000 of these shares were sold indirectly by Mr. Gordon as custodian for his minor children.
• President and CEO Andrew Gordon sold 290,000 shares for $10.14, generating $2.9 million from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Coffee Holding Co.Inc. here.

You can view the full list of sales from this Insider Sales page.

Sell/Buy Ratio: The insider Sell/Buy ratio is calculated by dividing the total insider sales in a given week by total insider purchases that week. The adjusted ratio for last week went up to 71.1. In other words, insiders sold more than 71 times as much stock as they purchased. The Sell/Buy ratio this week compares unfavorably with the week prior when the ratio stood at 39.9. This is the highest the ratio has been since last October. We are calculating an adjusted ratio by removing transactions by funds and companies and trying as best as possible only to retain information about insiders and 10% owners who are not funds or companies.

Insider Sell Buy Ratio March 30, 2012

Note: As mentioned in the first post in this series, certain industries have their preferred metrics such as same store sales for retailers, funds from operations (FFO) for REITs and revenue per available room (RevPAR) for hotels that provide a better basis for comparison than simple valuation metrics. However metrics like Price/Earnings, Price/Sales and Enterprise Value/EBITDA included below should provide a good starting point for analyzing the majority of stocks.

Notable Insider Buys:

1. Fortress Investment Group LLC (FIG): $3.56

Director David B. Barry acquired 400,000 shares of this investment management company, paying $3.47 per share for a total amount of $1.4 million. Mr. Barry increased his stake by 266.72% to 549,969 shares with this purchase.

It was interesting to see this filing come in late Friday evening. The last purchase by Mr. Barry was in March 2011 when he picked up 100,000 shares at an average price of $6.23. Investors have spurned Fortress and other private equity firms that went public partially because of their corporate structure where unit holders have little say in the way the company operates and partially because of their dismal performance. The stock sports a dividend yield of 5.8% after FIG reinstated a dividend of 5 cents per quarter in the fourth quarter of 2011.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Fortress Investment Group LLC here.

2. John B. Sanfilippo & Son, Inc. (JBSS): $12.47

Shares of this raw and processed nuts company were acquired by 4 insiders:

• Director Jasper B. Sanfilippo acquired 36,163 shares, paying $11.14 per share for a total amount of $402,856. Mr. Sanfilippo increased his stake by 24.85% to 181,707 shares with this purchase.
• 10% Owner John E. Sanfilippo acquired 28,152 shares, paying $11.14 per share for a total amount of $313,613.
• CEO Jeffrey T. Sanfilippo acquired 10,000 shares, paying $11.14 per share for a total amount of $111,400.
• COO, President Jasper Brian Sanfilippo acquired 5,531 shares, paying $11.14 per share for a total amount of $61,615.

Under normal circumstances we would have not reported on these transactions because they are not open market purchases but are essentially the transfer of stock between members of the SanFilippo family. Some members of the family are selling stock, while others picked up that stock and hence the same purchase price. However I decided to highlight these pseudo purchases when I noticed that the company was trading well below book value.

While the company has net debt on its balance sheet, it is also trading for just 0.72 times tangible book value. In fact the stock is almost a Benjamin Graham type net-net with one caveat. Current assets exceed total liabilities but if you discount the $155 million in inventory of nuts by 50%, the stock is no longer a net-net. With prices of nuts trending higher, it may not be necessary to discount the inventory by 50%, as you would in a traditional net-net situation. The company is also profitable albeit with low margins as is usually the case in the food business. The stock is close to a 52 week high but worth keeping on your radar.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for John B Sanfilippo & Son Inc. here.

3. Opko Health, Inc. (OPK): $4.73

Shares of this medical appliances & equipment company were acquired by 2 insiders:

• CEO & Chairman Phillip Frost M.D. acquired 131,000 shares, paying $4.78 per share for a total amount of $625,613. These shares were purchased indirectly by Frost Gamma Investments Trust.
• Executive VP-Administration Steven D. Rubin acquired 2,000 shares, paying $4.68 per share for a total amount of $9,360. Mr. Rubin increased his stake by 0.05% to 4,191,168 shares with this purchase.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Opko Health, Inc. here.

4. SandRidge Energy, Inc. (SD): $7.83

Director Daniel Jordan acquired 50,000 shares of this oil and gas exploration company, paying $7.73 per share for a total amount of $386,487. Mr. Jordan increased his stake by 3.28% to 1,573,266 shares with this purchase.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for SandRidge Energy, Inc. here.

5. Paramount Gold and Silver Corp. (PZG): $2.26

Shares of this gold and silver exploration company were acquired by 2 insiders:

• CEO Christopher Crupi acquired 100,000 shares, paying $2.21 per share for a total amount of $221,123. Mr. Crupi increased his stake by 2.69% to 3,819,766 shares with this purchase.
• Chief Financial Officer Carlo Buffone acquired 20,000 shares, paying $2.20 per share for a total amount of $43,995.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Paramount Gold and Silver Corp. here.

You can view the full list of purchases from this Insider Buying page.

Notable Insider Sales:

1. Express Inc. (EXPR): $24.98

Shares of this apparel chain were sold by 9 insiders:

• President, CEO & Chairman Michael A. Weiss sold 200,000 shares for $25.68, generating $5.1 million from the sale.
• EVP – Planning and Allocation John J. Rafferty sold 105,800 shares for $25.54, generating $2.7 million from the sale.
• EVP – Chief Marketing Officer Lisa A. Gavales sold 60,000 shares for $25.64, generating $1.5 million from the sale.
• EVP-Men’s Merchandising & Design David G. Kornberg sold 60,000 shares for $25.39, generating $1.5 million from the sale.
• EVP – Sourcing and Production Colin Campbell sold 22,500 shares for $25.58, generating $575,620 from the sale.
• EVP – Stores Pierre Jeanne sold 20,000 shares for $25.39, generating $507,868 from the sale.
• EVP & Chief Operating Officer Matthew C. Moellering sold 19,500 shares for $25.39, generating $495,171 from the sale.
• EVP – Real Estate Douglas H. Tilson sold 16,500 shares for $25.39, generating $418,991 from the sale.
• EVP-Women’s Merchandising & Design Fran Horowitz-Bonadies sold 6,500 shares for $25.58, generating $166,302 from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Express Inc. here.

2. Accenture Plc (ACN): $64.5

Shares of this professional services company were sold by 6 insiders:

• Executive Chairman William D. Green sold 130,000 shares for $65.23, generating $8.5 million from the sale.
• Group Chief Executive -Communications, Media & Technology Martin I. Cole sold 34,000 shares for $65.24, generating $2.2 million from the sale.
• Chief Human Resources Officer Jill Smart sold 14,293 shares for $65.14, generating $930,975 from the sale.
• Director Blythe J. McGarvie sold 10,000 shares for $64.56, generating $645,640 from the sale. 5,000 of these shares were sold as a result of exercising options immediately prior to the sale.
• Chief Operating Officer Johan Deblaere sold 6,000 shares for $65.24, generating $391,434 from the sale.
• Chief Financial Officer Pamela J. Craig sold 2,000 shares for $65.23, generating $130,462 from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly through a trust.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Accenture plc here.

3. Western Refining, Inc. (WNR): $18.82

Shares of this crude oil refining company were sold by 6 insiders:

• Chairman of BOD, Exec. Chair Paul L. Foster sold 300,000 shares for $19.48, generating $5.8 million from the sale. 100,000 of these shares were sold indirectly by Franklin Mountain Investments Limited Partnership.
• President-Refining & Marketing Mark J. Smith sold 41,294 shares for $19.21, generating $793,130 from the sale.
• Chief Accounting Officer William R. Jewell sold 27,643 shares for $19.21, generating $530,903 from the sale.
• Sr. VP – Treasurer Jeffrey S. Beyersdorfer sold 6,585 shares for $18.47, generating $121,611 from the sale.
• President & CEO Jeff A. Stevens sold 1,317 shares for $18.47, generating $24,322 from the sale.
• Chief Financial Officer Gary R. Dalke sold 969 shares for $18.47, generating $17,895 from the sale.

Except for Mr. Foster’s sales, all other sales were related to the payment of income taxes required to be paid to the Internal Revenue Service as a result of the vesting of restricted stock.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Western Refining, Inc. here.

4. Macerich Co. (MAC): $57.75

Chairman & CEO Arthur M. Coppola sold 119,360 shares of this retail REIT for $56.73, generating $6.8 million from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Macerich Co. here.

5. Toll Brothers Inc. (TOL): $23.99

Director Bruce E. Toll sold 250,000 shares of this luxury home builder for $23.60, generating $5.9 million from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Toll Brothers Inc. here.

You can view the full list of sales from this Insider Sales page.

Sell/Buy Ratio: The insider Sell/Buy ratio is calculated by dividing the total insider sales in a given week by total insider purchases that week. The adjusted ratio for last week declined slightly to 39.9. In other words, insiders sold almost 40 times as much stock as they purchased. The Sell/Buy ratio this week compares favorably with the week prior when the ratio stood at 41. We are calculating an adjusted ratio by removing transactions by funds and companies and trying as best as possible only to retain information about insiders and 10% owners who are not funds or companies.

Insider Sell Buy Ratio March 23, 2012

Note: As mentioned in the first post in this series, certain industries have their preferred metrics such as same store sales for retailers, funds from operations (FFO) for REITs and revenue per available room (RevPAR) for hotels that provide a better basis for comparison than simple valuation metrics. However metrics like Price/Earnings, Price/Sales and Enterprise Value/EBITDA included below should provide a good starting point for analyzing the majority of stocks.

Notable Insider Buys:

1. OPKO Health Inc. (OPK): $4.87

CEO & Chairman Phillip Frost M.D. acquired 656,000 shares of this medical appliances & equipment company, paying $4.97 per share for a total amount of $3.3 million. These shares were purchased indirectly by Frost Gamma Investments Trust.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for OPKO Health Inc. Common Stock here.

2. Quidel Corporation (QDEL): $17.77

Shares of this diagnostic testing solutions manufacturer were acquired by 2 insiders:

• Director Jack W. Schuler acquired 65,815 shares, paying $16.60 per share for a total amount of $1.09 million. Mr. Schuler increased his stake by 2.03% to 3,311,465 shares with this purchase. These shares were acquired indirectly through a living trust.
• President & CEO Douglas C. Bryant acquired 10,000 shares, paying $16.55 per share for a total amount of $165,462. Mr. Bryant increased his stake by 5.43% to 194,098 shares with this purchase.

Another director also picked up a small amount of shares earlier this month and a cluster of insiders purchased shares last Summer at prices ranging from $13.01 to $15.18 as you can see from this page. While net income has been low or even negative in some quarters, the company managed to generate $47 million in operating cash flow last year.

When the company reported fourth quarter results, revenue came in better than expected and increased 21% year-over-year. Quidel has $13 million in net cash on the balance sheet and trades for 11.4 times operating cash flow.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Quidel Corporation here.

3. Anadarko Petroleum Corporation (APC): $79.41

Director Charles W. Goodyear acquired 10,000 shares of this oil and gas company, paying $84.19 per share for a total amount of $841,877. Mr. Goodyear increased his stake by 1371.74% to 10,729 shares with this purchase.

Mr. Goodyear was appointed to Anadarko’s board of directors as of March 1, 2012. New directors generally tend to purchase shares in their companies and hence I would not read much into this purchase.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Anadarko Petroleum Corporation here.

4. American DG Energy Inc. (ADGE): $1.8399

Director Charlest Maxwell acquired 400,000 shares of this on-site energy systems provider, paying $1.50 per share for a total amount of $600,000. Mr. Maxwell increased his stake by 90.02% to 844,339 shares with this purchase.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for American DG Energy Inc. Common here.

5. Genie Energy Ltd. (GNE): $9.85

Shares of this energy company were acquired by 3 insiders:

• Chairman of the Board Howard S. Jonas acquired 52,000 shares, paying $9.90 per share for a total amount of $514,800. Mr. Jonas increased his stake by 2.43% to 2,195,624 shares with this purchase.
• CEO Claude Pupkin acquired 5,350 shares, paying $9.42 per share for a total amount of $50,397. These shares were purchased through an IRA account.
• CFO and Treasurer Avi Goldin acquired 1,900 shares, paying $9.69 per share for a total amount of $18,411. These shares were purchased through an IRA account.

Genie Energy was spun out of IDT Corporation (IDT) last October and closed its first day of trading at $8.64. It is interesting to see this cluster of insider purchases less than six months after the company went public. Mr. Jonas serves as the Chairman of both Genie Energy and IDT. The company has a lot of net cash on its balance sheet but beyond that the numbers don’t look particularly attractive.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Genie Energy Ltd. Class B Commo here.

You can view the full list of purchases from this Insider Buying page.

Notable Insider Sales:

1. Ross Stores, Inc. (ROST): $57.11

Vice Chairman and CEO Michael Balmuth sold 258,066 shares of this discount retailer for $55.90, generating $14.43 million from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Ross Stores, Inc. here.

2. Tech Data Corporation (TECD): $54.13

Shares of this software and IT hardware distributor were sold by 2 insiders:

• Director Steven A. Raymund sold 150,000 shares for $54.66, generating $8.2 million from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly through a trust.
• SVP/Corp Controller Joseph B. Trepani sold 10,227 shares for $54.54, generating $557,781 from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Tech Data Corporation here.

3. Sanderson Farms, Inc. (SAFM): $53.81

Shares of this poultry company were sold by 2 insiders:

• CEO, Chairman of Board Joe F. Sanderson sold 131,138 shares for $53.93, generating $7.1 million from the sale.
• Treasurer & CFO Michael D. Cockrell sold 20,000 shares for $54.22, generating $1.1 million from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Sanderson Farms, Inc. here.

4. Riverbed Technology, Inc. (RVBD): $27.56

Shares of this network products company were sold by 2 insiders:

• Director James R. Swartz sold 180,000 shares for $27.61, generating $4.9 million from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly by Burn3 LLC.
• Chief Technology Officer Steven Mccanne sold 90,666 shares for $26.50, generating $2.4 million from the sale. These shares were sold as a result of exercising options immediately prior to the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Riverbed Technology, Inc. here.

5. Adobe Systems Incorporated (ADBE): $33.815

Shares of this software company were sold by 3 insiders:

• Director John E. Warnock sold 120,000 shares for $33.60, generating $4.03 million from the sale.
• SVP, General Counsel & Secretary Karen O. Cottle sold 41,251 shares for $33.30, generating $1.37 million from the sale. These shares were sold as a result of exercising options immediately prior to the sale.
• SVP WW Field Operations Matthew Thompson sold 32,334 shares for $33.70, generating $1.09 million from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Adobe Systems Incorporated here.

You can view the full list of sales from this Insider Sales page.

Sell/Buy Ratio: The insider Sell/Buy ratio is calculated by dividing the total insider sales in a given week by total insider purchases that week. The adjusted ratio for last week went up to 41. In other words, insiders sold 41 times as much stock as they purchased. The Sell/Buy ratio this week compares favorably with the week prior when the ratio stood at 26.35. We are calculating an adjusted ratio by removing transactions by funds and companies and trying as best as possible only to retain information about insiders and 10% owners who are not funds or companies.

Insider Sell Buy Ratio March 16, 2012

Note: As mentioned in the first post in this series Introduction to Insider Weekends, certain industries have their preferred metrics such as same store sales for retailers, funds from operations (FFO) for REITs and revenue per available room (RevPAR) for hotels that provide a better basis for comparison than simple valuation metrics. However metrics like Price/Earnings, Price/Sales and Enterprise Value/EBITDA included below should provide a good starting point for analyzing the majority of stocks.

Notable Insider Buys:

1. Sohu.com Inc. (SOHU): $53.88

Chief Operating Officer Xin Wang acquired 60,000 shares of this Chinese online media company, paying $49.43 per share for a total amount of $2.97 million. Mr. Wang increased his stake by 200% to 90,000 shares with this purchase.

This is the first insider purchase we have seen at Sohu since we started tracking insider data two years ago. The stock is trading close to its 52 week low and trades for 3.5 times EBITDA. Reaction to this purchase that came in last Monday was initially muted but then the stock posted a gain of 5.5% on Friday.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Sohu.com Inc. here.

2. Furiex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (FURX): $24.35

Director Fredric N. Eshelman acquired 97,809 shares of this drug development collaboration company, paying $23.07 per share for a total amount of $2.3 million. Mr. Eshelman increased his stake by 4.70% to 2,180,933 shares with this purchase. A number of insiders have purchased shares since last September when the stock was trading for just $14.95. Mr. Eshelman has been consistently buying since last Fall.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Furiex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. here.

3. China Information Technology (CNIT): $1.05

President and CEO Jiang Huai Lin acquired 1,084,895 shares of this Chinese application software company, paying $1.20 per share for a total amount of $1.3 million. Mr. Lin increased his stake by 9.79% to 12,163,355 shares with this purchase.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for China Information Technology, I here.

4. Lance, Inc. (LNCE): $24.14

Director Michael A. Warehime acquired 40,298 shares of this packaged snacks manufacturer, paying $23.31 per share for a total amount of $939,379. Mr. Warehime increased his stake by 0.45% to 8,909,928 shares with this purchase. These shares were jointly acquired by Mr. Warehime and his wife Patricia Warehime.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Lance, Inc. here.

5. The Cheesecake Factory (CAKE): $31.19

Director Herbert Simon acquired 25,000 shares of this restaurant chain, paying $30.70 per share for a total amount of $767,413. These shares were purchased indirectly through a trust.

As you can see from this page, there have been a number of options related sales at Cheesecake Factory but also a trio of insider purchases last August, which included a purchase by the CFO. With only 170 restaurants in 35 states, the company still has a lot of room to grow.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for The Cheesecake Factory Incorpor here.

You can view the full list of purchases from this Insider Buying page.

Notable Insider Sales:

1. Tesla Motors, Inc. (TSLA): $35.32

Shares of this electric car manufacturer were sold by 4 insiders:

• Director Antonio J. Gracias sold 585,105 shares for $35.67, generating $20.9 million from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly by Valor Equity Management.
• General Counsel Eric S. Whitaker sold 56,666 shares for $34.99, generating $1.9 million from the sale. These shares were sold as a result of exercising options immediately prior to the sale.
• CTO Jeffrey B. Straubel sold 5,000 shares for $35.00, generating $175,000 from the sale.
• VP- Manufacturing Gilbert Passin sold 300 shares for $35.00, generating $10,500 from the sale. These shares were sold as a result of exercising options immediately prior to the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Tesla Motors, Inc. here.

2. InvenSense, Inc. (INVN): $20.1

President, CEO, Chairman Steven Saeed Nasiri sold 1,300,000 shares of this manufacturer of motion sensing systems for $14.85, generating $19.3 million from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly through a trust.

The company raised $75 million in an IPO priced at $7.50/share last November.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for InvenSense, Inc. Common Stock here.

3. Cerner Corporation (CERN): $76.93

Shares of this healthcare services company were sold by 3 insiders:

• Vice Chairman Clifford W. Illig sold 200,000 shares for $76.59, generating $15.3 million from the sale.
• Executive VP & COO Michael Nill sold 25,000 shares for $75.96, generating $1.9 million from the sale. These shares were sold as a result of exercising options immediately prior to the sale.
• Chairman, CEO & President Neal L. Patterson sold 2,500 shares for $75.93, generating $189,825 from the sale. These shares were sold indirectly by Mr. Patterson’s spouse.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Cerner Corporation here.

4. Reynolds American Inc (RAI): $41.35

Shares of this cigarettes manufacturer were sold by 11 insiders:

• President & CEO Daniel M. Delen sold 104,752 shares for $41.99, generating $4.4 million from the sale.
• EVP & Chief Financial Officer Thomas R. Adams sold 70,136 shares for $42.00, generating $2.9 million from the sale.
• EVP & Chief HR Officer Lisa J. Caldwell sold 49,424 shares for $41.98, generating $2.1 million from the sale.
• SVP-Strategy & Planning – RJRT Walton T. Carpenter sold 30,220 shares for $41.99, generating $1.3 million from the sale.
• SVP & Treasurer Daniel A. Fawley sold 19,876 shares for $41.99, generating $834,664 from the sale.
• SVP – Strategy & Business Development E Kenan Whitehurst sold 18,685 shares for $41.81, generating $781,208 from the sale.
• EVP-Operations & CSO of RJRTC Jeffery S. Gentry sold 15,299 shares for $41.99, generating $642,478 from the sale.
• SVP, Deputy GC & Secretary McDara Folan sold 13,500 shares for $41.98, generating $566,790 from the sale.
• President & CCO of RJRT Andrew D. Gilchrist sold 12,585 shares for $41.99, generating $528,467 from the sale.
• SVP & Chief Accounting Officer Frederick W. Smothers sold 7,146 shares for $41.99, generating $300,076 from the sale.
• EVP, Gen. Counsel & Assistant Secretary Martin L. Holton sold 4,766 shares for $41.99, generating $200,118 from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Reynolds American Inc Common St here.

5. Western Refining Inc. (WNR): $20.01

Shares of this crude oil refining company were sold by 2 insiders:

• Chairman of BOD, Executive Chair Paul L. Foster sold 300,000 shares for $19.61, generating $5.9 million from the sale. 100,000 of these shares were sold indirectly by Franklin Mountain Investments Limited Partnership.
• Director Ralph A. Schmidt sold 100,000 shares for $19.85, generating $1.9 million from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Western Refining Inc. Western R here.

You can view the full list of sales from this Insider Sales page.

Sell/Buy Ratio: The insider Sell/Buy ratio is calculated by dividing the total insider sales in a given week by total insider purchases that week. The adjusted ratio for last week dropped to 26.35. In other words, insiders sold more than 26 times as much stock as they purchased. The Sell/Buy ratio this week compares favorably with the week prior when the ratio stood at 52.9. We are calculating an adjusted ratio by removing transactions by funds and companies and trying as best as possible only to retain information about insiders and 10% owners who are not funds or companies.

Insider Sell Buy Ratio March 9, 2012

Note: As mentioned in the first post in this series Introduction to Insider Weekends, certain industries have their preferred metrics such as same store sales for retailers, funds from operations (FFO) for REITs and revenue per available room (RevPAR) for hotels that provide a better basis for comparison than simple valuation metrics. However metrics like Price/Earnings, Price/Sales and Enterprise Value/EBITDA included below should provide a good starting point for analyzing the majority of stocks.

Notable Insider Buys:

1. GTx, Inc. (GTXI): $3.48

10% owner Jack W. Schuler acquired 866,623 shares of this biotechnology company, paying $3.33 per share for a total amount of $2.89 million. We normally do not include insider purchases by 10% owners but in this case, one of the two Form 4 filings listed Mr. Schuler as a Director of the company and the other one as a 10% owner.

When exploring if he was indeed a director, I noticed that Mr. Schuler has been a long-term shareholder of GTx, was the former president and COO of Abbott Laboratories (ABT) and has been a director of Medtronic (MDT) since 1990. This was a direct open market purchase and not a private placement.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for GTx, Inc. here.

2. Corning Incorporated (GLW): $13.29

Director Gordon Gund acquired 150,000 shares of this specialty glass and ceramic products manufacturer, paying $12.75 per share for a total amount of $1.91 million. These shares were acquired indirectly through a trust.

It is interesting to see such a large purchase close to a 52 week low. The company has been investing heavily in growth both through a large R&D budget ($671 million representing 8.5% of revenue last year) and through capital investments. With growing revenue and operating margins north of 23%, the company is generating enough operating cash flow to offset those high capital expenditures and add cash to its strong balance sheet. As of December 2011 the company had $3.41 billion in net cash on the balance sheet. The stock sports a 2.3% dividend yield and trades for 6 times EBITDA.

Voluntary Disclosure: I have a long position in Corning.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Corning Incorporated here.

3. Fresh Del Monte Produce, Inc. (FDP): $22.64

Director Amir Abu-Ghazaleh acquired 82,954 shares of this fresh produce producers paying $22.63 per share for a total amount of $1.88 million. Mr. Abu-Ghazaleh increased his stake by 2.37% to 3,582,549 shares with this purchase.

The brother of CEO Mohammad Abu-Ghazaleh, Mr. Amir Abu-Ghazaleh has served as a director of Fresh Del Monte since 1996. As you can see from this page, most of the transactions for Fresh Del Monte are direct or options related sales and several of those sales were by members of the Abu-Ghazaleh family. It is interesting to see one of them finally turn around and buy shares. The stock dropped 11% over the last week after reporting a fourth quarter loss on weakness in Europe and lower prices for bananas. The company has low single digit profit margins typical of this business and trades below book value.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Fresh Del Monte Produce, Inc. here.

4. Rayonier Inc. (RYN): $45.04

Director David C. Brown acquired 17,000 shares of this real estate and timber company, paying $44.26 per share for a total amount of $752,420. Mr. Brown increased his stake by 111.75% to 32,212 shares with this purchase.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Rayonier Inc. here.

5. Furiex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (FURX): $22.48

Director Fredric N. Eshelman acquired 30,474 shares of this drug development collaboration company, paying $20.71 per share for a total amount of $631,117. Mr. Eshelman increased his stake by 1.54% to 2,008,124 shares with this purchase.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Furiex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. here.

You can view the full list of purchases from this Insider Buying page.

Notable Insider Sales:

1. Sara Lee Corporation (SLE): $21.38

Director Jeffrey W. Ubben sold 20,404,523 shares of this processed & packaged goods company for $20.52, generating $418.7 million from the sale.

These shares were sold indirectly through ValueAct Capital Master Fund. It appears that the fund essentially liquidated its entire position in Sara Lee through an open market sale ahead of the impending split of Sara Lee into two companies, one of which will inherit the meat business and the other will inherit the higher growth coffee business.

Mr. Ubben is a Founder, CEO and the CIO of ValueAct Capital. With offices in San Francisco and Boston, the fund prefers taking concentrated positions in a limited number of companies that are fundamentally undervalued.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Sara Lee here.

2. Public Storage (PSA): $130.72

Director Tamara Hughes Gustavson sold 570,000 shares of this diversified REIT for $130.86, generating $74.59 million from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Public Storage here.

3. Cabela’s Inc (CAB): $34.6

Director Michael R. McCarthy sold 619,955 shares of this sporting goods retailer for $34.68, generating $21.5 million from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Cabela’s Inc here.

4. Crown Castle International Corp (CCI): $54.43

Shares of this cell phone tower company were sold by 5 insiders:

• Director Landis J. Martin sold 103,000 shares for $52.32, generating $5.39 million from the sale. 2,000 of these shares were sold indirectly from Mr. Martin’s children’s trust.
• EVP & General Counsel Blake E. Hawk sold 100,000 shares for $54.00, generating $5.4 million from the sale.
• Senior VP, CFO & Treasurer Jay A. Brown sold 42,000 shares for $54.28, generating $2.28 million from the sale.
• SVP & Chief Commercial Officer Patrick Slowey sold 37,700 shares for $53.21, generating $2 million from the sale.
• Director Edward C. Hutcheson sold 30,000 shares for $52.42, generating $1.57 million from the sale.

Voluntary Disclosure: I have a hedged short position in Crown Castle International

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for Crown Castle International Corp here.

5. FARO Technologies, Inc. (FARO): $53.78

Shares of this computerized measurement devices company were sold by 4 insiders:

• Director Simon Raab sold 195,268 shares for $52.77, generating $10.3 million from the sale. 31,945 of these shares were sold indirectly through Xenon Research. Mr. Raab and his wife own all outstanding shares of Xenon Research.
• Chief Financial Officer Keith S. Bair sold 18,128 shares for $54.09, generating $980,474 from the sale. A portion of these shares were sold as a result of exercising options immediately prior to the sale.
• Director Stephen Cole sold 15,000 shares for $55.76, generating $836,380 from the sale.
• Director Marvin R. Sambur sold 5,000 shares for $50.05, generating $250,250 from the sale.

You can view the list of recent insider transactions for FARO Technologies, Inc. here.

You can view the full list of sales from this Insider Sales page.