Interactive Brokers (NASDAQ: IBKR), Micron Technology (NASDAQ: MU), and AutoZone (NYSE: AZO) are three notable stocks seeing large insider trades. Micron’s buy is a clear bullish signal for one of the best-performing stocks of 2025. However, while IBKR and AZO insiders are both selling, the implications for these names are not the same.
IBKR Insider Initiates Big Sale After +40% Gain in 2025
Interactive Brokers is a giant player in the brokerage industry, with a market capitalization of over $130 billion. The stock performed very well in 2025, delivering a total return of nearly 46%. The company generated strong growth of 19% for the full year, and saw its pretax margin hit a record high of 77%. The company saw strong growth in trading volumes and added over 1 million net new accounts, which was also a record number.
Despite a strong 2025, Vice Chairman Earl Nemser is now selling. On Jan. 22 and Jan. 23, Nemser sold around $19 million worth of IBKR shares. These sales were not made under a predetermined 10b5-1 plan, indicating that they were discretionary in nature, and thus providing a bearish signal. Nemser made these sales at an average price near $77, slightly above the stock’s Jan. 26 closing price.
Still, when it comes to insider sales, it is difficult to truly know the seller’s motivation. It is possible that Nemser is selling to generate liquidity for a personal purchase, rather than being bearish on IBKR stock.
Micron’s Insider Buy: Director Purchases Over 20,000 Shares
After a stellar 2025, U.S. semiconductor giant Micron Technology just garnered a significant insider purchase. Micron shares skyrocketed 240% last year, driven by insatiable demand for memory chips for artificial intelligence systems, leading to supply shortages. In 2025, shares are already up another 36%, as investors continue to bet on increased pricing power among memory chip companies.
Insiders are getting in on the game as well. On Jan. 13 and Jan. 14, Director Liu Teyin purchased approximately 23,200 Micron shares for a total value of around $7.8 million. While insider sales can take place for various reasons, purchases essentially have only one interpretation: insiders are bullish on their company’s stock. While this move is a positive sign for Micron, it is also worth pointing out that shares are already 15% above Liu's purchase price, near $337.
Additionally, Micron Executive Vice President Manish Bhatia just made a move opposite to Teyin’s. He sold over 26,600 Micron shares on Jan. 22, equal to around $10.4 million. These sales were not made under a predetermined 10b5-1 plan. Bhatia made these sales at an average price near $391, very close to Micron’s Jan. 26 closing price of around $389. These sales push back somewhat on the bullish implications of Teyin’s purchase.
AZO Insider’s $11M Sale Isn’t What It Seems
AutoZone delivered an uninspiring return in 2025 of approximately 6%. Revenue growth has been choppy over the past four quarters, ranging from less than 1% to 8%. Additionally, AutoZone’s adjusted operating margin last quarter came in at around 17%, a more than 350-basis-point drop from the same period a year ago. However, the stock has gotten off on the right foot in 2026, rising almost 12%.
Amid this recent recovery, Senior Vice President Richard Smith is selling shares. His Jan. 16 transaction amounts to more than $11 million, and did not come under a 10b5-1 plan. At first glance, this seems to provide a bearish signal around AutoZone.
However, a deeper look into Smith’s FORM 4 filing removes this concern. Smith acquired and disposed of 3,190 shares on the same day. The acquisition price was around $745, and the disposal price was $3,500. This came as Smith exercised stock options and then sold those shares to the market. Smith then realized the difference between the acquisition and disposal prices. As options are part of Smith’s compensation package, these sales are not bearish. They simply reflect Smith turning a large part of his compensation into usable cash.
Analysts Keep Boosting MU Targets
The clearest signal in this group is the bullish signal from Micron’s insider purchases. Still, investors should note the caveats mentioned. The MarketBeat consensus price target on Micron is near $347, implying around 11% downside in shares. However, targets continue to move higher. Multiple analysts have placed $500 targets, implying almost 29% upside.
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The article "These 3 Stocks Just Saw Major Insider Moves—Time to Be Bullish or Bearish?" first appeared on MarketBeat.
