Shares of Meta Materials (NASDAQ:MMAT) have been in full focus in recent days due to the suspension of trading of Meta Materials Preferred Shares (MMTLP). Last week, MMTLP shareholders received a surprise after the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) initiated the suspension, which was originally supposed to be enacted on Dec. 13. FINRA cited halt code U3, which is used for an “extraordinary event” that has the potential to cause a “major disruption.”
Shareholders were quick to take to social media to call out the unfairness of the situation. Some shareholders speculated FINRA suspended trading due to short positions of hedge funds. They argued these short sellers would be required to cover their positions before the suspension date, which could drive up the price of MMTLP.
A petition has even been created on Change.org to address the concerns. The petition calls for an end to dark pool trading and payment for order flow (PFOF), among other requests. At the time of writing, the petition had over 8,600 signatures.
With that in mind, let’s get into the details of the MMAT stock insider sale.
MMAT Stock: Insider Thomas Welch Sells 75,000 Shares
On Dec. 7, 10% owner Thomas Welch sold 75,000 shares at an average price of $2.23 per share. The shares were sold indirectly through the Rotifer Foundation, of which Welch is affiliated with. Following the sale, the foundation still owns 1.43 million shares.
According to a Form 4 received by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Oct. 27, Welch directly owns 22.16 million shares. His position consists of 2.45 million shares of MMAT stock and 19.71 million exchangeable shares of Metamaterial Exchangeco. Each share of Metamaterial Exchangeco can be exchanged for one share of MMAT. Furthermore, Welch’s stake solidifies him as the largest shareholder of MMAT, beating out institutions like BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) and Vanguard.
Welch’s Dec. 7 sale was not overly significant when you factor in that he still owns more than 23 million shares after the sale. Meanwhile, other insiders of the company seem to bullish. In the past year, insiders have acquired 349,195 shares and sold 132,808 shares including Welch’s. That adds up to a total net activity of 216,387 shares purchased.
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On the date of publication, Eddie Pan did not hold (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.
