Insider Sells Westinghouse Air Brake Shares

Faiveley Erwan filed a Form 4 with the SEC on Thursday, November 12. The insider sold 2,600 shares of Westinghouse Air Brake Inc WAB at $71.34 on Monday, Nov 09, and sold 5,500 shares at $69.09 on Tuesday, Nov 10. After the transactions, the executive's stake in Westinghouse Air Brake Inc. movedto 6,102,081 shares. Shares of Westinghouse Air Brake decreased by 0.1% from the previous closing price.

The Importance of Insider Transactions

While transactions from an insider shouldn't be used as the sole item to make an investment or trading decision, an insider buying or selling stock in their company can be a good added factor that leads to more conviction in a decision.

Insiders buying stock after a notable sell off can indicate an insider's long-term belief in the success of the company; insiders buying stock at new highs can be an indication the exec doesn't feel the stock is overvalued. Conversely, insiders who are selling stock at new lows can potentially indicate some kind of capitulation moment. Insiders selling at new highs can indicate that exec wants to "take some profit" and "lock in a gain."

Important Transaction Codes

Investors prefer focusing on transactions which take place in the open market, indicated in the Form 4 with codes P for purchase and S for sale. An open-market transaction means the insider went into the market of their own volition and made an active decision about the potential path for a company and its stock moving forward.

Transaction codes other than P or S are often viewed with less conviction as they are often not tied to a decision by the exec. As an example, transaction code C indicates the conversion of an option. Transaction code A indicates the insider may have been forced to sell shares in order to receive compensation the exec was promised upon being hired by a company.