Those following along with O3 Mining Inc. (CVE:OIII) will no doubt be intrigued by the recent purchase of shares by Jose Vizquerra Benavides, President of the company, who spent a stonking CA$2.1m on stock at an average price of CA$1.10. Aside from being a solid chunk in its own right, the deft move also saw their holding increase by some 39%.

Check out our latest analysis for O3 Mining

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At O3 Mining

Notably, that recent purchase by Jose Vizquerra Benavides is the biggest insider purchase of O3 Mining shares that we've seen in the last year. That means that even when the share price was higher than CA$1.02 (the recent price), an insider wanted to purchase shares. Their view may have changed since then, but at least it shows they felt optimistic at the time. In our view, the price an insider pays for shares is very important. It is generally more encouraging if they paid above the current price, as it suggests they saw value, even at higher levels.

While O3 Mining insiders bought shares during the last year, they didn't sell. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!

O3 Mining is not the only stock insiders are buying. So take a peek at this free list of under-the-radar companies with insider buying.

Does O3 Mining Boast High Insider Ownership?

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. Insiders own 6.6% of O3 Mining shares, worth about CA$7.2m, according to our data. Whilst better than nothing, we're not overly impressed by these holdings.

So What Do The O3 Mining Insider Transactions Indicate?

It's certainly positive to see the recent insider purchases. And an analysis of the transactions over the last year also gives us confidence. However, we note that the company didn't make a profit over the last twelve months, which makes us cautious. While the overall levels of insider ownership are below what we'd like to see, the history of transactions imply that O3 Mining insiders are reasonably well aligned, and optimistic for the future. So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. To help with this, we've discovered 4 warning signs (2 are concerning!) that you ought to be aware of before buying any shares in O3 Mining.