A new column argues that one of the best clues about a company can come from the people closest to it, especially when they buy shares with their own money after a stock collapse. The piece uses the writings of NYU finance professor Aswath Damodaran to make the point that numbers need a narrative, and that a company’s story, management quality, and ability to change a market can matter as much as valuation models.
The first example is Varonis, the Israeli-American cybersecurity company listed on Nasdaq. At the end of 2022, its stock had fallen from about $73 a year earlier to $16 to $17. In response, founder, chairman and CEO Yaki Faitelson, CFO and COO Guy Melamed, then sales executive James O’Boyle, and director Abraham Kass bought about $2.2 million of stock privately. Varonis itself also accelerated buybacks, repurchasing shares at around $19 for about $45 million. The stock later surged to above $50 within a year, allowing some of those insiders to sell at much higher prices. The company later weakened again after two disappointing quarters, and in early 2026 the stock dropped back to around $20.
That second decline brought another round of insider buying. Faitelson and Kas returned as buyers, joined by veteran director John Gavin Jr. and CTO David Bass, for a combined investment of about $1.2 million. Varonis also bought back a record amount of stock in the first quarter of 2026, spending more than $130 million at an average price of about $25. After first-quarter results on April 29 showed 27% revenue growth to $173 million and a raised full-year forecast, the stock climbed to above $36, about 70% above the insider purchase price.
The second case is Similarweb. On May 13, after its first-quarter report and announcement that founder and CEO Or Offer was searching for a replacement, the stock fell during trading to $2.62. When the insider trading window opened on May 18, Offer bought shares first, followed by directors Tamar Rappaport-Dagim, Barak Eilam, and Harel Beit-On. Together they invested about $1 million. Less than a month later, Similarweb announced two multi-year contracts worth a combined $47 million, and the stock jumped intraday to $5.43, about 70% above the insiders’ purchase price.
