24th Oct 2013 08:51
LONDON (Alliance News) - Sports Direct International PLC Chief Executive Mike Ashley Wednesday sold GBP106 million worth of shares, on the day the newly promoted FTSE 100 company saw its stock rise in the wake of strong results from the sports retailer.
A regulatory filing from the company Thursday showed Ashley had sold 16 million shares at 662.5 pence each through his MASH Holdings Ltd investment company, a 2.7% stake in the company. He is still left with a 61.7% stake in the business after the sale, although has pledged not to sell any more shares for 180 days as a condition of the sale.
Sport Direct shares closed up 1% Wednesday after the company, which joined the FTSE 100 last month, said gross profit was up 19% in the nine weeks to September 29, fueled by a 15% increase in sales. The company said that trading since the end of this period has remained strong and reiterated its full-year outlook.
Thursday morning, the stock was down 5.3% at 674.50 pence, by far the biggest decline on the FTSE 100, as Ashley's discounted sale price effectively set a new market value for the stock.
Ashley last sold shares in February, when he made GBP100 million selling 4.18% of the company at 400 pence a share.
By Steve McGrath; [email protected]; @stevemcgrath1
Copyright 2013 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
Related Shares:
Sports Direct