David Skidmore, a director at Sunoco, LP (SUN), recently picked up 2,500 shares. The buy doubled the director’s holdings, and came to a total cost just over $95,000.
This marks the first insider buy since March 2020 during the last market low. Since then, company insiders have been sellers, with a cluster of directors and one executive selling in November 2020. Overall, insiders have generally transacted in amounts under $100,000 at a time.
Insiders own nearly 35 percent of the oil and gas refining company.
Shares have outperformed the S&P 500 by 10 points in the past year, thanks to a strong performance in energy prices. Revenue is up 70 percent over the past year, although earnings are only up 4 percent in the same time.
Action to take: As an LP, the company pays a sizeable dividend, a major plus for shareholders compared to traders. At present, shares yield 8.6 percent. The dividend hasn’t been changed lately, and traders shouldn’t expect too much growth there.
For traders, shares are likely to rebound when current market fears decline. The March $42.50 calls, last going for about $0.60, are an inexpensive way to bet on a move higher in shares in the coming months. That strike price is also right at the stock’s 52-week high, so a big jump in shares could lead to triple-digit returns.
Disclosure: The author of this article has no position in the company mentioned here, but may trade after the next 72 hours. The author receives no compensation from any of the companies mentioned in this article.