- Hikma chair spends £3.5 million
- Vistry chair backs builder
- GlobalData CFO raises cash
Mazen Darwazah, executive chairman of drug manufacturer Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK), bought 200,000 shares at £17.56 for a total value of £3.5 million on 7 August.
Darwazah’s purchase comes after the company’s core first-half operating profit fell by 7% to $373 million ‘reflecting evolving product mix and appreciation of the Euro’.
However, the company maintained its strong 2025 group outlook, expecting revenue growth of between 4% and 6%, so the executive chairman could be taking advantage of the 12% fall in the share price year-to-date combined with the positive outlook.
VISTRY CHAIR BUYS SHARES
Greg Fitzgerald, executive chair and chief executive of housebuilder Vistry (VTY), bought 84,068 shares at 590p for a total value of £496,264 on 5 August.
The move by Fitzgerald could be seen as a vote of continuing confidence in the developer after it had a poor 2024, issuing three profit warnings in quick succession.
In its latest trading update on 10 July, Vistry said it expected first-half adjusted operating profit to be around £125 million, in line with expectations but down 23% from £161.8 million a year ago.
The company is hoping to receive a boost this year from UK government plans for affordable housing and further interest rate cuts, it said in a statement.
GLOBALDATA CFO SELLS STOCK
Graham Lilley, chief financial officer of London-based data analytics and consulting company GlobalData (DATA:AIM), sold 536,000 shares at 143p for a total value of £766,527 on 6 August.
The sale comes after the company reported a 12% increase in revenue to £156.5 million for the half-year to June but a 1% fall in underlying growth.
Some progress has been made with its three-year growth transformation plan and AI (artificial intelligence) initiatives.
Over the past year, GlobalData shares have fallen 38%.
