Directors’ Dealings by Jenny Lowe

A group of directors have topped up their stakes in Manchester based insurance broker and financial services specialist CBG Group, as it revealed that results for last year are ‘anticipated to be in line with management expectations’. With the shares having tumbled from 180p to a recent 43.5p low over the last two years, this news, and the revelation that the board is ‘confident about the prospects and opportunities’ in the coming year, came as a welcome relief and helped coax a bounce to 59p.

However, while chairman Laurie Turnbull correctly waited until after this uplifting news to buy £14,000-worth of shares at 52.6p and 58.26p, four of his colleagues were rather more old-school in their approach, by picking up the shares before the rest of the market was informed. On 15 January, three days before the announcement, non-executive Robin Slinger and executive director Stuart Mollekin each bought more than £4,000-worth at 43.85p and 44.55p, while on the 14th group managing director Martyn Hughes and finance director Mike Askew both bought £14,000 of shares at 45p. All four have already made a tidy profit on these purchases.

Media minnow surges
Meanwhile, shares in recently loss-making Media Corporation surged 12 per cent after boasting of a return to profit in the first quarter of 2010 following a ‘material shift in the group's fortunes’ thanks to the takeover of online casino and poker company Purple Lounge. CEO Justin Drummond says AIM-quoted Media Corp the three months to December will show losses of £453,000 converted into a £370,000 pre-tax profit.

Floated ten years ago at 10p, the shares slumped all the way to 0.63p last year before rebounding of late. Drummond, who bought two million shares at around 1p during the summer, spent a further £6,900 at 3.45p to take his stake to 8.42 per cent, while non-executive director Chris Gorman picked up over £9,000 worth at 3.5p.

Backing recovery
Similarly, Paul Heal, finance director of optical components and systems manufacturer Gooch & Housego, has dipped into the market to pick up £16,700 of the fast-recovering stock, up from its 30p low of last March to 167.5p but still well off a £5-plus high of 2007. In December, the company announced a recovery in demand, after what has been a tough time. Although results for the year to September showed profits decreased by 42.6 per cent to £3.1 million, revenues were up 9.1 per cent to £36.4 million. Management is bullish about longer term prospects, with chief executive Gareth Jones saying ‘we wanted to use the opportunity [of restructuring] to come out fighting and make it a two-pronged recovery, so we have continued to invest in R&D. We’re leaner and fitter and ready for a longer-term, if hesitant, recovery.’

Tech directors take stock
After a raft of encouraging news at specialist software play Innovise, finance director Tony Edwards spent £63,000 to increase his backing of the company.

The IT services and workforce management specialist, chaired by Elderstreet Investments partner Vin Murria, lifted sales in the year ended September 58 per cent to £10.1 million and says ‘conditions currently appear relatively stable and our sales pipeline is encouraging’. Edwards’s purchase at 31.5p helped the company’s exceptionally tightly held shares, which hit an all-time low of 23.5p last December.

Likewise, semiconductor specialist Cyan Holdings, is making progress after a tough six months. Having sold thousands of microcontrollers, wireless gas meter controllers and street light controllers for field trials and prototypes to customers in Asia, Europe and the USA, the company is anticipating soon receiving some large orders this year. Confident in future growth prospects, CEO Kenn Lamb and non-executive director John Read each committed £8,750 cash at 1.75p.