Filings, Insiders & OwnershipCore researchlive in production

Insider Cluster Buying

Updated dailyData needs: mediumlong only

In plain terms

When several insiders buy their own stock within a short window (a 'cluster buy'), it's the most reliable insider signal. Sales are mostly noise.

How it works

Lakonishok-Lee 2001, Cohen-Malloy-Pomorski 2012: corroborated insider purchases (Form 4 transaction_code='P') from multiple insiders within a short window are the single most-predictive insider signal — ~6%/year alpha over 6-12 months. Single-insider buys are noisy; cluster buys (3+ distinct insiders, or a single buy > $1M from CEO/CFO) are not. Long for 60 days on cluster buys; long for 30 days on a single $1M+ transaction. Sales are deliberately ignored — they're confounded by liquidity, diversification, and options expiry.

Live results

1 times picked on its own · 5 times inside a blend (5 beat the stock) · updated 2026-06-06

This strategy is a frequent ingredient in blends that combine a few strategies on one stock. It has contributed to 5 such blended picks (5 of which beat simply holding the stock). Picking it on its own is only one of the ways it shows up.

How its picks scored vs. buy & hold

Each pick is graded on a recent year it was never tuned on, against simply owning the same stock

Where its edge concentrates

Share of picks in each company-size group that beat buy & hold

How often it trades

Active vs. patient. Bars on the left mean it waits for rare setups; bars on the right mean it trades often

Return vs. buy & hold

How much each pick beat or trailed simply owning the stock over the test year (extreme microcap moves trimmed)

Loading substrate evidence…

Data dependencies

SEC insider trades
Form-4 insider transactions with role, size, and trade direction.
SEC form4 archive
A data feed this strategy reads, refreshed on its normal schedule.

Expected edge

Reported return: ~6%/yr alpha for cluster buys; 82bps/mo opportunistic
Tested over: 1992-2009

~6%/yr alpha for cluster buys; 82bps/mo when filtered for opportunistic insiders

Example tickers where this is likely to fire

JPM WFC CMA

Illustrative only, the signal fires based on the live data, not a fixed list.

Related families

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When the cost to borrow a stock spikes, shorts are paying premium to bet against it — usually a bearish signal, except at extremes where they get squeezed.

Explore Insider Cluster Buying on alphactor.ai

See which tickers this family is currently firing on, with live signals and rankings.

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