IGO Ltd (ASX: IGO) shares are up 1.4% to $14.47 apiece in lunchtime trading on Tuesday amid news of a major purchase by company chair Michael Nossal.
According to an ASX lodgement, Nossal purchased 20,000 IGO shares on-market last Friday.
The total consideration for the buy-up was $276,617.02.
The purchase took Nossal's holding from 55,000 shares to 75,000 shares in the ASX 200 nickel and lithium producer.
At the current IGO share price, his personal holdings are now worth a total of $1.080 million.
Image source: Getty Images
Time to buy IGO shares?
Seeing company directors investing personal money in their companies tends to give ASX investors a nice feeling of comfort and reassurance.
So should you follow in Nossal's footsteps?
As my Fool colleague Tony reports, Fairmont Equities boss Michael Gable thinks so.
Gable says:
Fears about weaker Chinese growth have negatively impacted the resources sector.
But we believe IGO and other resource stocks have been oversold and provide a buying opportunity.
Shaw and Partners reckons IGO shares "could become an attractive 'cash cow' if the lithium price were to advance further".
Top broker Goldman Sachs has retained its buy rating on IGO shares with a trimmed 12-month price target of $14.80.
The broker highlights the quality of IGO's Greenbushes operation, which is the lowest-cost lithium asset under its coverage.
IGO the dividend turbocharger of the season
As we recently reported, IGO shares are at the top of the list of companies delivering the biggest dividend boosts this earnings season.
The ASX 200 lithium miner's final dividend is 1,100% higher than last year at 60 cents per share.
The dividend comprises a fully franked 44-cent final dividend and a 16-cent special dividend.
This follows a 278% annual increase in underlying net profit after tax (NPAT) to $1.53 billion.
IGO recorded a record underlying earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) of $1.99 billion in FY23, up 177% year over year.
The company raked in $1.02 billion in revenue, up 13% on FY22.
For full details, see IGO's full-year financial results.
