Investors starved for good news can look to company insiders for one of the few positive signals about a market rattled by a credit crisis, falling consumer sentiment, rising unemployment and mounting fears of a recession.
Analysts look to the buying and selling trends of insiders, who are typically long-term investors, for clues to the broader market outlook. Insider buying reached multiyear highs last August, when the subprime market meltdown first hammered stocks before they recovered somewhat in the fall.
(GE) The chairman and CEO of General Electric Co. bought 62,000 shares of common stock, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing Tuesday.
In a Form 4 filed with the SEC, Jeffrey R. Immelt reported he bought the shares Tuesday for $32.74 to $33 a piece.
Insiders file Form 4s with the SEC to report transactions in their companies' shares. Open market purchases and sales must be reported within two business days of the transaction.
General Electric is based in Fairfield, Conn.
