Top Insider Buys Of The Past Week: Carnival, Charles Schwab, Scientific Games

• Insider buying can be an encouraging signal for potential investors.
• Two CEOs made notable share purchases ahead of year's end.
• A rebound from the Christmas Eve sell-off benefited these insiders.

Conventional wisdom says that insiders and 10 percent owners really only buy shares of a company for one reason -- they believe the stock price will rise and they want to profit from it. So insider buying can be an encouraging signal for potential investors, particularly during periods of uncertainty.

Here's a look at a few notable insider purchases reported in the past week.

Charles Schwab

Charles Schwab Corporation SCHW saw Walter Bettinger, its president and chief executive, add to his stake this past week. At per-share prices of $37.88 to $39.20, the more than 124,600 shares reportedly acquired cost him more than $4.83 million. Note that these trades were made pursuant to a Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Earlier this month, a Schwab analyst warned via Barron's that the bear market had arrived and a recession could be coming. The stock ended last week at $41.06 per share, so the CEO's purchases seem fortunately timed. Shares have traded as high as $60.22 in the past year, but the consensus price target was at $54.18 on last look.

See Also: Sears Chairman Reportedly Submits 11th-Hour Bid As Retailer Faces Liquidation

Scientific Games

A Scientific Games Corp SGMS director returned to the buy window last week, adding another 300,000 shares of this gambling products and services provider. The share prices for these purchases ranged from $15.71 to $17.37, and the transactions totaled around $4.95 million. Note that this director also bought 600,000 shares in the previous week.

The company announced management promotions and an extended license agreement with Hasbro before Christmas. The shares closed most recently at $17.49, after rising more than 8 percent for the week. The stock traded above $62 last May, but the consensus price target was just $32.55 on last look.

Carnival

CEO Donald Arnold picked up almost 21,600 Carnival Corp CCL shares this past week at between $45.75 and $46.67 apiece. That cost him around $1.00 million. That included shares "acquired pursuant to the purchase under, or the dividend reinvestment feature of, the reporting person's brokerage account or the Carnival Corporation Employee Stock Purchase Plan."

Solid quarterly results posted in the prior week were overshadowed by disappointing guidance. Shares were trading at $48.68 a share on last look, so the CEO saw a quick pop in his new shares. That was also a rebound from the 52-week low of $45.64 seen in the Christmas Eve market sell-off. The analysts polled have a consensus price target of $68.21.