Directors’ Dealings by Jenny Lowe

In the general financial sector, a number of directors have been encouraged by the recent stock market resurgence.

First-half improvement
At Fairpoint, the provider of advice and solutions to financially stressed consumers, non-executive chairman Matthew Peacock picked up 100,000 shares at 54p, just two months after spending just under £50,000 on 80,000 shares in the AIM-traded company at 61p.

This latest purchase followed an upbeat trading statement from Fairpoint, in which it said it was on track to meet full-year forecasts following a first-half performance that met management expectations, with ‘overall profitability significantly improved on the same period in 2008’. This bodes well for ‘the seasonally stronger second half of the year’.

Hayden buys into Hanson
Elsewhere in the sector, non-executive director Hayden Phillips picked up a further 13,250 shares at 75p each in corporate finance and broking house Hanson Westhouse, which recently came to AIM through a reverse-takeover of Jersey-based SovGEM.

Similarly, over at entertainment firm MBL Group, finance director Lisa Clarke has shown her confidence in the firm’s future growth potential by spending a total of £16,515 in two transactions that saw her pick up 10,000 shares at 131.43p and 2,500 shares at 135p.

The market responded positively to the news, with shares rising 3.73 per cent (5p) to 139p. Earlier in July, the CD, DVD and games supplier reported a 42 per cent pre-tax profit hike for the year to March to £8.1 million, on revenue up 77.5 per cent to £144 million.

Meanwhile, in the chemicals sector, confirmation that food biotechnology giant Monstanto had topped up its order for Plant Health Care’s harpin seed treatment prompted non-executive chairman Dominik Koechlin to snap up 50,000 shares at 175p, paying £87,500 for the privilege. His timing proved opportune, with the shares subsequently surging to 210p.

Mining company Sunkar Resources has seen its share price rise from the ashes this year, moving from a 5.25p low to 15p. Still well south of their 68.25p 52-week peak, brokers rate Sunkar a strong buy, so it comes as no surprise to learn that its directors have been out in force. Chief executive Serikjan Utegen and corporate affairs director Nurdin Damitov bought 350,000 shares in a transaction worth £49,700 each, and they weren’t alone. Non-executive chairman Teck Soon Hong has picked up 188,250 shares for £24,737.25 and finance director Donald Sinclair recently spent £14,911 on 110,455 shares at 13.5p.

Another venture in the commodities space, oil and gas producer Regal Petroleum, has had a rocky six months, but that hasn’t stopped non-executive director Adrian Coates and non-executive chairman Keith Henry from spending £19,570 and £12,840 on 30,578 and 20,000 shares respectively.

Earlier in the year, shares in Minster Pharmaceuticals plummeted on news that its migraine prevention drug Tonabersat failed to show a benefit to migraine sufferers in a phase II clinical trial. However, following a few months of relative stability, finance director Karl Keegan tested the waters by investing just under £10,000 of his hard-earned cash in 151,900 shares at 6.5p.

Over in the engineering space, positive trading updates have buoyed share prices, nowhere more noticeably than at AIM-listed bus-maker Optare, where there has been a boardroom buying spree. CEO Jim Sumner and executive chairman John Fickling have picked up 989,307 shares at 5p and chief financial officer Mike Dunn also spent £17,782 on 355,644 Optare shares. Non-executive directors David Coulson Stonehouse and David Maughan also bought shares, spending £10,000 and £4,855 respectively.