A Pet Care CEO Just Bought About $500,000 of His Stock — Plus Two More Insider Signals
When corporate insiders buy shares of their own company in the open market, investors should take notice.
Insiders have a closer view of business performance, product momentum, and operational execution than any outside shareholder. They cannot trade on material nonpublic information, and insider buying is never a guaranteed predictor of future returns—but it can be a useful idea filter, particularly when purchases are sizable, occur after volatility, or involve senior executives.
Today’s note highlights three situations where insiders have recently put meaningful money to work:
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a CEO purchase in a pet-care name that has already moved sharply higher,
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a cluster of director buying after a retail stock was punished, and
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large executive purchases in a fintech name following a historic decline.
Company: Elanco Animal Health (SYM: ELAN)
CEO buying into strength
Recent price: about $24.39
Elanco Animal Health is a well-known player in animal health, a category with long-term tailwinds driven by pet ownership trends and owners’ willingness to spend on care and medications.
The key insider headline: CEO Jeffrey Simmons bought 22,000 shares on December 11, 2025 at a weighted average price of about $21.75, a purchase totaling roughly $478,500.
Why this purchase stands out
What makes this particularly noteworthy is context. The stock had already been moving higher, and the CEO still chose to add. Insider buys after a run are often read as a statement that management believes the market is still undervaluing what is coming next—product cycle, margin improvement, or multi-year demand visibility.
The macro tailwind: Americans spend heavily on pets
Pet spending is not a niche trend anymore; it is a major consumer category.
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The American Pet Products Association reported total U.S. pet industry expenditures reached $152 billion in 2024.
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On the health side specifically, reporting has noted that in 2024, U.S. households spent nearly $40 billion on veterinary care and pet pharmaceuticals.
Those numbers help explain why animal-health companies can work as durable compounders when they execute well: even in uncertain economic conditions, owners tend to prioritize pet health.
What to watch next
If you are using insider buying as a “signal,” the next step is to define what would confirm the thesis:
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Sustained product momentum: do new launches translate into recurring demand and repeat purchasing?
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Margin trajectory: animal-health businesses can re-rate when gross margin and operating leverage improve.
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Guidance credibility: the market rewards predictable execution.
Bottom line: A CEO stepping in with nearly $500,000 is a meaningful vote of confidence—especially when the stock is already elevated versus prior lows.
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Company: Bath & Body Works (SYM: BBWI)
Insiders step in after a selloff
Recent price: about $21.83
Bath & Body Works has been in a difficult tape, and the stock experienced an especially sharp drawdown after earnings. Barron’s reported the shares fell 25% in a single session after missing quarterly expectations and lowering its fiscal-year forecast, marking the worst one-day drop in over five years.
Then something important happened: insiders bought.
Barron’s reported that six directors purchased shares following the plunge, including:
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director Lucy Brady,
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Huntington Bancshares CEO Stephen Steinour (a director),
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Hershey CFO Steven Voskuil (the largest buy in the group),
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Board Chair Sarah Nash, and
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Signet Jewelers CEO James Symancyk (a director), among others.
Separately, public summaries of the filings note that Symancyk purchased 22,500 shares on November 24, 2025.
Why cluster buying matters
One insider buy can be noise. Multiple directors buying in close proximity is often the stronger tell—because it suggests shared conviction that the market reaction was excessive, or that the company’s turnaround plan is being mispriced.
In BBWI’s case, the purchases came right after the stock was punished for results and guidance. That is typically when insider buying carries the most informational weight—because it aligns with a period of maximum investor pessimism.
What to watch next
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Evidence of stabilization: same-store sales trends, traffic, and merchandising traction
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Margin recovery: promotional intensity and input costs can sway results
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Execution against the strategy: management credibility matters after a guide-down
Bottom line: The cluster of director buying does not erase fundamental risk, but it does suggest insiders viewed the selloff as an opportunity rather than a warning.
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Company: Fiserv (SYM: FI)
Execs buy after a historic collapse
Recent price: recently around $64.38
Fiserv suffered a dramatic repricing after the company cut growth and earnings expectations, with Argentina-related headwinds cited in coverage as one factor among broader concerns. Barron’s reported the shares plunged 44% on October 29, 2025 after the forecast cut.
Then insiders stepped in in size. Barron’s and MarketWatch reported that:
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CFO Paul Todd bought 17,000 shares for roughly $1 million, and
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Chief Administrative and Legal Officer Adam Rosman bought 7,900 shares for nearly $500,000.
Why this matters
Large executive purchases immediately after a collapse often signal one of two things (or both):
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management believes the market has over-discounted the downside, and/or
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management wants to “re-anchor” confidence after credibility is damaged.
In turnaround setups, insider buying can be particularly useful because it forces the right question: What is the market pricing in—and what would need to happen for that narrative to improve?
What to watch next
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Restoring credibility: clearer guidance and measurable progress on key initiatives
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Operating performance: metrics tied to growth engines like Clover, pricing, and product execution (as referenced in the financial press)
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Macro sensitivity: how much of the headwind is transitory versus structural
Bottom line: The purchases are meaningful because they are large, senior, and timed after a major credibility event.
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