Thanks gutfeeling.
The company Policy is also important, as per here:
https://www.aurisminerals.com.au/wp-content/uploads/Auris-Securities-Trading-Policy.pdf.
I have plucked out these parts:
# This Policy applies to RNI Directors, Key Management Personnel, officers, employees and consultants (“Staff”).
# In this Policy, "RNI securities" means shares, rights and options.
# While in possession of price sensitive information, Staff shall not: trade in RNI securities...
# RNI's overriding policy is that Staff shall not be dealing in RNI securities in any period they are in possession of price sensitive information. Furthermore, there may be occasions when the RNI board imposes a suspension on the ability of Staff to trade at a time when trading might otherwise have been allowed.
#The following dealings are not subject to this policy: dealings under an offer or invitation made to all or most of the shareholders of RNI, such as a rights issue, a security purchase plan...;
The query that I have is what is meant by 'trade' or 'trading'? Would the exercise of an option be considered a trade? Imo, 'no', but it is debatable. Anyway, if 'yes', would the last bullet point exception exclude it?
Anyway, there are 2 ways of looking at this, and both are good I reckon:
1. They know about the drilling position and were not put off (one way of putting it
) by it and were not prevented by ASX Rules or Company policy from exercising the options, and
2. They, like Manuel from Fawlty Towers or Sgt Schultz, had no inside knowledge about the drilling putting them in the same ignorant position as us outsiders - meaning that the news could still be excellent.
The underlying issue though is that the company cannot sit on price-sensitive info for any period at all, meaning that the drilling did/has not hit mineralisation that would affect the SP should it become public info.
