Gigantic Financial Trade Highlights Insider Selling: Charles Schwab, Huntsman, ServiceMaster, Bank of New York Mellon, Take-Two Interactive and More

[cnxvideo id=”507732″ placement=”ros”]What an incredible week, and almost regardless of who you voted for, the last thing most people expected was Donald Trump to be the winner. One thing that also was surprising was the huge rally last week. We noticed in our weekly screen of insider activity that the buyers overwhelmed the sellers last week. That’s a very positive sign as we head into the final six weeks of 2016.

We cover insider selling every week at 24/7 Wall St., and we like to remind readers that just because an individual or 10% institutional owner sells stock, that is no cause for immediate alarm. Many top executives, and even directors, are compensated with stock and often sell just to diversify portfolios or purchase other assets.

Here are companies that reported notable insider selling last week.

Charles Schwab Corp. (NYSE: SCHW) had a famous investor selling stock this past week. Chairman Charles Schwab continues to sell stock at an orderly pace. This week the iconic discount brokerage executive sold 600,000 shares at prices between $32.50 and $33.75. The total for the trade came to a whopping $20 million. As we have noted in the past, Schwab is past 80 years old and clearly much of his selling over the years has been for estate planning purposes. The shares traded Friday at $35.25, so a fair amount left on the table.

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Huntsman Corp. (NYSE: HUN) had its executive chairman selling stock last week. Jon Huntsman parted with 600,000 shares, and the share price ranged from $17.25 to $17.27. The total for the trade was posted at $10 million. The company manufactures and sells differentiated organic and inorganic chemical products worldwide. The stock traded Friday at $18.10, so some left on that table as well.

ServiceMaster Global Holdings Inc. (NYSE: SERV) had its top executive selling shares last week. CEO Robert Gillette sold a total of 343,750 shares at prices that ranged from $36.00 to $36.86 apiece. The total for the sale was about $13 million. The company provides residential and commercial services in the United States, and its shares traded on Friday at $35.50.

Bank of New York Mellon Corp. (NYSE: BK) had a director selling shares last week. Vice Chairman Thomas Gibbons sold a total of 74,632 shares at $43.94 per share. The total for the sale was posted at $3 million. Shares of the bank traded on Friday at $46.00, so a lot left on the table.

Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. (NASDAQ: TTWO) saw the CFO at the video gaming company shedding shares this past week. Lainie Goldstein sold 56,167 shares at prices that ranged from $49.27 to $50.01. The total for the sale was posted at $3 million. The stock traded on Friday at $47.90, so a well-timed sale indeed.

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These companies also reported insider selling last week: Antero Resources Corp. (NYSE: AR), Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) and Targa Resources Corp. (NYSE: TRGP).

It was decidedly bullish to see so much insider buying come in after the election results. It was also bullish to see so little selling. That bodes well for investors as the details of a Trump administration become more clear in the days and weeks ahead.