Insiders at Greggs PLC Are Buying the Dip

Insider transaction activity can help investors cut through market noise. Insiders are some of the most informed participants in the market meaning their stock purchases and sales can provide valuable trading signals.

In this report, we are going to highlight some recent insider buying at Greggs PLC (GRG:LN). Greggs is a UK-based food-on-the-go retailer that sells sandwiches, bakery goods, and drinks. Founded in 1939, it has over 2,000 shops across the UK today. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and currently has a market cap of around £2.58 billion.

Insider Buying

Our data shows that on June 23, both CFO Richard Hutton and CEO Roisin Currie purchased stock. Mr. Hutton picked up 2,514 shares at a price of £26.32 while Ms. Currie added 3,077 shares at the same price. Combined, the two insiders spent just under £150,000 on stock.

Company Experience

Both of these insiders have a lot of company experience. Ms. Currie joined Greggs in 2010 and served in several top-level roles before being appointed CEO in May 2022. Meanwhile, Mr. Hutton joined Greggs back in 1998 so he has been at the company for around 25 years now. Given this experience, they are likely to have a good understanding of the group’s prospects.

It’s worth noting that Ms. Currie’s trade has increased the size of her holding by around 90%. This suggests that she is very confident the stock is set to move higher.

Share Price Weakness

Greggs shares have experienced a pullback recently. Back in May, they were trading above 2,900p. Recently, however, they have fallen to near 2,500p. It seems investors are concerned that inflation could continue to hit the firm’s profits.

The company’s most recent trading update was quite encouraging, however. In this update, the group advised that it had achieved 17.1% like-for-like sales growth for the first 19 weeks of 2023. And it said that its cost inflation expectations remained unchanged due to good forward cover on key commodities.

“We have made a good start to the year with sales in line with plans and continued progress on our strategic initiatives. Looking ahead, whilst we expect the macro backdrop to continue to be challenging, we are confident in making further progress,” wrote the company.

In light of this solid update, we see the insider buying here as a bullish development.