Summary

Neutral remains the order of the day when it comes to insider-sentiment data from Vickers Stock Research. As has been the case for several weeks now, insiders simply will not commit to a bullish or a bearish stance. The likely biggest current contributor to this is the cyclical impact of earnings season, when corporate executives, directors, and beneficial owners are broadly prohibited from trading. But throw in the election and Fed interest-rate decision this week, and it is not hard to make a case for static trading behavior. How landlocked is insider sentiment? Last week, Vickers’ broadest sentiment ratio, the Total Eight-Week Sell/Buy Ratio, clocked in at 4.13. This week, the ratio has moved to 4.11. Of note, those readings exist in a neutral range that starts at 2.50 and goes up to 6.00. So they are almost exactly at the midpoint of the neutral range – and, therefore, about as neutral as a reading can get. On a sector basis, insider buying was particularly notable in Energy over the last week, with nearly $30 million of shares bought versus less than $1 million sold. Buying activity was also of note within Consumer Discretionary, trailing selling activity by a factor of just 1.4-times, as well as in the Healthcare sector. Meanwhile, insider selling was greatest in the Information Technology sector, with shares valued