If you are interested in tracking insider trading activity, you can get up-to-date information on the Web from a wide variety of sources.

Insiders are required to report their transactions in the company’s shares to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). These filings are usually done electronically via the SEC’s EDGAR (Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis, and Retrieval) system. They become public information and are available from the SEC Web site.

In addition, a number of Web sites monitor insider trading activity. Typically, these sites will provide summary information on insider trading activity at a specific company; a few sites also provide lists and alerts of recent insider filings.

Listed below are insider trading sources that are accessible to the general public for free.

Regulatory Agencies

Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
www.sec.gov
For individual company filings or the most recent insider trading forms. The forms that tell you the most about an insider’s intentions are Forms 4 and 144, which reflect actual purchases and sales (Form 4) and intentions to sell (Form 144). Two other forms containing useful insider trading activity are Forms 3 and 5.

Nasdaq
www.nasdaq.com
You can view insider filing activity at a particular company by typing in the ticker symbol for the company you’re interested in. Select “InfoQuotes” from the drop-down box and then click on “Holdings/Insider.” The information provided includes purchases and sales within the last three months and the last 12 months, proposed sales that are based on Form 144 filings, plus specific details on the last five insider trades.

Other Sources

CBS MarketWatch
cbs.marketwatch.com
Click on the Investor Tools tab then select the Stocks section. You can use the Insider Trading search tool to search by company name or ticker. Provides listing of recent insider transactions, including the number of shares, price and type of transaction (whether it was a sell or purchase).

CNBC on MSN Money
moneycentral.msn.com
From the Investing tab go to Stocks, and then select Insider Trading from under the Research heading. Search by company name or ticker. Provides listing of recent insider buy and sell transactions, as well as planned sales from Form 144 filings.

SEC Info
www.secinfo.com
Go to Insider Trading on the home page. Provides a list of Form 3, 4, 5, and 144 filings; you can sort by company, insider, form, and filing date. It then provides a link to the form at the SEC Web site.

SmartMoney.com
www.smartmoney.com
Under Stocks, go to the left-hand Quotes section, type in the ticker symbol of the company and select “Insiders” from the drop-down box. Includes insider trading activity for individual stocks; also provides a price chart with detailed insider buy and sell transactions, insider gain/loss data and an insider timing grade.

Vickers Stock Research
www.vickers-stock.com
Limited access to free insider transaction reports, as well as listings based on insider ratings—such as the top 25 stocks most actively bought by insiders. Under the Visitors section, go to Create Free Report and select the report.

Wall Street City
www.wallstreetcity.com
Under stocks, type in the ticker symbol of the company and select Insider Trading. Provides detailed insider trading activity and a price chart with buying and selling activity.