The result of the general election saw a big bounce in stock markets last week, and it seems investors weren’t the only ones looking to cash in.
A steady stream of directors have sold shares in their companies over the past week, as bosses seemingly give themselves a bumper payday before Christmas.
By far the biggest deal comes from FTSE 100 housebuilder Berkeley Group (BKG), whose high-profile and outspoken founder and chairman Tony Pidgley cashed in on the ‘Boris bounce’ by selling 1m shares for £50.40 each on Monday.
The deal pocketed Pidgley just under £50.5m. On Friday as the election result came in, shares in Berkeley jumped over 10% from around £45 up to a high of £52.14, and have remained around the £50 mark since.
The transaction has also reduced Pidgley’s stake to 1.3%, meaning he is no longer a top ten shareholder in the business.
It takes his total raked in from share sales to £216.5m since he started reducing his stake in the company in April 2017.
CASHING IN ON SHORT HAUL
Another well-known boss selling a wad of shares is Wizz Air (WIZZ) chief executive Jozsef Varadi, who gained £4.9m after selling 125,000 shares in the business at £39.45 apiece on Monday and Tuesday.
The budget airline also benefitted from the stock market rally after the election, albeit to a lesser extent with the shares nudging from £38.70 to just under £40.
The transaction comes at a curious time, with Wizz Air expanding its executive management team and launching a new subsidiary in Abu Dhabi as it pursues growth in 2020.
The sale may not be that concerning for shareholders, but one company where there might be cause for concern is tenpin bowling operator Ten Entertainment (TEG).
Chairman Nick Basing has sold yet more shares this week, offloading 125,000 of them at 290p apiece for a total of £362,500.
It comes after he sold £136,000 worth of shares last week, following another load worth £332,000 in November.
Meanwhile non-executive director Christopher Mills also sold 816,500 shares worth a total of £2.2m this week, after a £2.6m sale in November.
For a full list of the past week’s most significant director trades, click here.
