The broad November rally saw many beaten down stocks turn higher, but corporate insiders at some of the companies that didn’t participate in the upturn are betting that a rebound is just getting started. Stock purchases by corporate insiders are tracked by many fund managers as a potential signal of company quality. The idea is that corporate executives and board members buy stock outside of their compensation packages when they believe the market is undervaluing the companyand when the prospects for the underlying business are bright. Investors pay particular attention when managers make a big purchase of a stock that has been sliding, which happened at several companies in late November, according to VerityData and securities filings. For example, shares of Spectrum Brands are down about 17% over the past three months, but its top executive just stepped in. CEO David Maura scooped up 40,000 shares over the course of of two days earlier this week, security filings show. It’s the fourth round of buying for Maura this year, according to VerityData. SPB 3M mountain Shares of Spectrum Brands have been in a slump. Spectrum Brands is a conglomerate of different home and pet products, including George Foreman cooking grills and the Wild Harvest pet food line. Maura was not alone among corporate insiders making moves in the waning days of November. Here are the top five insider buys revealed in the final week of November, according to VerityData and securities filings. Spectrum Brands: Maura bought 40,000 shares at an aggregate price of $2.67 million. Kayne Anderson Energy Infrastructure Fund : EVP John Frey purchased 118,000 shares for $1.18 million. Arbor Realty Trust : CEO Ivan Kaufman bought 75,000 shares at a total cost of $906,400. CFO Paul Elenio also recently purchased 7,500 shares. Qorvo : Director Walden Rhines purchased 5,000 shares for a total cost of $466,000. Dentsply Sirona : Director Gregory Lucier purchased 10,000 shares at an aggregate price of $314,400. Some of the other companies on the list have seen their shares struggle recently. Wireless products stock Qorvo is down about 11% over the past three months. The purchase by director Walden Rhines is his first outright buy of Qorvo shares since 2016, according to VerityData. Meanwhile, medical stock Dentsply Sirona has dropped more than 14% over the past three months. And in addition to director Gregory Lucier’s recent purchase, the company’s CEO and CFO each made buys on Nov. 20.
