Director Dumps $411M in NVIDIA; Gates Loads Up on Waste Giant

An NVIDIA board director filed a cluster of large stock sales in early September. Mark A. Stevens, an independent director, sold over 1.84 million shares between August 31 and September 2. The transactions totalled $411 million. Filings were reported to regulators on September 2.

The scale stands out. Seven separate sell transactions over just three days point to a coordinated exit. There is no indication in the filings of a pre-arranged 10b5-1 plan, which would have been a weaker signal.

Contrast that with Republic Services. Bill Gates filed 15 separate buy transactions across the same period, accumulating over 1.08 million shares. His total outlay reached $241 million. Trades ran from August 28 through September 2, with filings submitted between September 1 and 3. Gates is already the company's largest shareholder. This level of continued buying signals strong personal conviction in the waste-management giant.

Elsewhere, activist fund Corvex Management filed a $22 million sale of Illumina shares on September 4. Post Holdings Chairman Emeritus William Stiritz sold $23 million of POST stock on September 2.

The NVIDIA sales and Republic Services purchases dominate the recent filing calendar. Investors will be watching whether further Stevens filings emerge in the days ahead.