Recent developments in the financial world have revealed that Gregory Stone, the Chief Ocean Scientist at TMC the Metals Co Inc. (NASDAQ:TMC), has engaged in insider trading activity by selling a significant number of company shares. This move, as disclosed in a Form 4 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, has raised questions about Stone's motivation and its implications for the company's future prospects.
Stone sold a total of 64,489 common shares through multiple transactions, totaling over $70,000. These sales occurred on various dates, starting with the first transaction on September 28, 2023, where 14,489 shares were sold at an average price of $1.0026. Subsequent sales took place on December 4 and December 22, 2023, with 25,000 shares sold each day at average prices of $1.1624 and $1.0957, respectively. The prices for the December transactions ranged from $1.09 to $1.17, as detailed in the footnotes of the filing. These sales significantly reduced Stone's holdings in TMC the Metals Co Inc., leaving him with 320,876 shares after the December 22 transaction.
In addition to the sales, the Form 4 filing disclosed an award of 12,414 restricted stock units (RSUs) to Stone on March 20, 2024, as part of the company's short-term incentive plan. These RSUs vested immediately upon issuance at a price of $0.00, indicating they were granted rather than purchased. Stone committed to providing full details of the sales transactions upon request by the SEC staff, the issuer, or a security holder of the issuer.
As Stone reduced his stake in TMC the Metals Co Inc., investors and market watchers may be concerned about the financial health and market performance of the company. According to InvestingPro data, TMC has a market capitalization of approximately $499.38 million and is trading at a high Price/Book multiple of 9.02. Despite a significant negative return on assets of -133.0% for the last twelve months as of Q1 2023, TMC has shown strong returns over shorter periods.
TMC's stock has experienced volatile price movements, with a 21.64% price total return over the last month, a 50.93% return over the last six months, and an 89.27% return over the last year. This volatility is consistent with the InvestingPro Tip that TMC's stock price movements are quite volatile. However, analysts remain cautious, not expecting the company to be profitable this year.
For a deeper analysis of TMC and its performance, InvestingPro offers additional insights, including 9 more InvestingPro Tips specific to the company. These tips can be found at https://www.investing.com/pro/TMC. Interested individuals can use the coupon code PRONEWS24 to get an additional 10% off a yearly or biyearly Pro and Pro+ subscription to access valuable information and analysis.
Overall, the insider trading activity of Gregory Stone at TMC the Metals Co Inc. raises questions about the company's future prospects and financial health. Investors and analysts may need to closely monitor the developments at TMC to make informed decisions regarding their investments in the company.