Insider trading can look like a flashing buy-or-sell signal, but the story is more nuanced in three market leaders.
Big sales of Broadcom (NASDAQ: AVGO) and AppLovin (NASDAQ: APP) largely reflect routine mechanics like tax-withholding and pre-set plans, while a sizable Coupang (NYSE: CPNG) purchase stands out as a deliberate vote of confidence.
While the implications of these moves may seem obvious at first, insider trades are often not what they seem, requiring careful analysis. The key is separating automatic or scheduled transactions from genuinely discretionary moves that may carry more informational weight.
Broadcom Insider Selling Tops $88 Million: Red Flag or Business as Usual?
Semiconductor lynchpin Broadcom is the world’s leader in custom-designed artificial intelligence (AI) processors.
But recently—and notably—the company has seen significant insider selling. So far in March, insiders have sold about $88.3 million in Broadcom stock, part of roughly $123 million in insider sales since the start of the first quarter.
Those transactions come from four individuals, including two who hold particularly important roles at Broadcom. Chief Financial Officer and Chief Accounting Officer Kirsten Spears sold approximately $19 million, and President of Broadcom’s Semiconductor Solutions Group Charlie Kawwas sold approximately $21 million. This comes on the heels of $250 million in shares sold in Q4 2025.
The headline number can look unsettling, especially given the stock’s recent volatility. But the key detail is why the shares were sold.
All of Broadcom’s insider sales in March “were sold through automatic transactions to cover withholding taxes due upon vesting of restricted stock units (RSUs)," per the Form 4 SEC filing.
RSUs are stock-based compensation that converts into shares when the award vests. Because vesting is generally treated as taxable income, insiders are required to pay taxes on it. Companies often use a “sell-to-cover” process that automatically sells a portion of the newly vested shares to satisfy withholding obligations. In other words, these sales are not discretionary by nature and are not a bearish signal for AVGO.
AppLovin: Insider Selling Picks Up as the Stock Pulls Back
AppLovin has become a dominant player in the mobile game advertising and user acquisition space, helping drive its market capitalization to nearly nearly $150 billion.
There are numerous reasons why the stock has fallen nearly 40% from its 52-week high, including the ongoing software sell-off that began at the start of the year.
There were no insider sales in AppLovin during the first two months of the year, but that changed quickly as Q1 progressed. So far in March, insiders have sold roughly $160 million in AppLovin shares.
Most of these sales are of no concern to investors as they fall under 10b5-1 plans. Under those plans, insiders determine when to sell shares far in advance of when transactions take place, which significantly reduces the likelihood that those insider sales are a bearish signal.
But CEO Adam Foroughi's $42 million sale did not come under a 10b5-1 plan.
While it is never inspiring to see a company’s CEO sell shares, it is also important to consider the magnitude of these sales, which in Foroughi's case is negligible. After the recent sales, his direct ownership stake in AppLovin was reduced from around 2.55 million shares to 2.43 million shares—a relatively minor decline of less than 5%. Considering this, insiders' recent AppLovin sales are not particularly concerning.
Coupang: Institutional Insider Ups Position as Shares Tank
On the other side of the equation, insiders are buying into e-commerce stock Coupang.
Coupang has established itself as the largest player in the South Korean e-commerce industry, amassing a market capitalization of approximately $35 billion.
However, the stock has struggled and is down nearly 44% from its 52-week high, including a loss of more than 19% in 2026.
A large data breach has been a significant headwind for the stock, having exposed the personal information of 33.7 million users—the largest breach in South Korean history. The incident has hindered Coupang’s growth, with the firm noting that revenues from its Product Commerce segment rose conservatively at just 12% year-over-year (YOY) in its latest quarter. This is a notable deceleration from the 18% YOY growth the prior quarter, which the company attributes to reduced customer activity following the data breach.
However, amid the carnage, Neil Mehta—a director and member of Coupang's board—disclosed a purchase of approximately $137 million in CPNG shares via his investment firm Greenoaks Capital Partners LLC, increasing his position by about 11%.
Because the buying was done via Greenoaks-managed funds, it reflects institutional accumulation, which is typically viewed as a more constructive signal than routine insider selling.
What These Trades Might (and Might Not) Say
Broadcom’s and AppLovin’s insider selling may look bearish at first glance, but the context matters: sales tied to RSU tax withholding or pre-set plans often say more about compensation and scheduling than about executives’ views on the business. That also means they don’t automatically validate the stock’s recent pullback.
Coupang’s disclosure is the clearer “signal” candidate because it reflects added exposure during weakness through Greenoaks-managed funds. Even then, it doesn’t guarantee a near-term bottom; it suggests the buyer may view the breach fallout as more temporary than the market is pricing in, with a longer time horizon in mind.
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The article "These Insider Trades Look Like Clear Signals—Until You Read the Fine Print" first appeared on MarketBeat.
