Shares in Xchanging (XCH) have soared a quarter since July, but chairman Geoff Unwin clearly thinks they’ll climb higher. He shelled out £92,500 for 50,000 shares over two days in late September, boosting his holdings by 18 per cent.
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His purchase is a vote of confidence in the group's efforts to stand out from the competition by offering technology services and selling software to the insurance and financial services industries. The transition hasn’t been easy: Xchanging’s first-half net revenues slumped 24 per cent, driving a 15 per cent fall in adjusted operating profit.
The strong stock performance of late may reflect gains at Xchanging’s business-processing services division, which recorded a 20 per cent increase in first-half adjusted operating profit as it won several high-margin contracts. The group has also spurred its growth via deals. It recently bought insurance-software company Total Objects, and acquired the European operations of Agencyport Software, which opens up cross-selling opportunities along with new markets such as risk-exposure modelling and health insurance.
Broker Investec expects full-year pre-tax profits of £52.9m, giving EPS of 10.2p, rising to £64.2m and 13.1p next year (2013: £51.7m and 10p).
| Buys | |||||||
| Company | Director | Date | No of shares | Price (p) | Value (£) | Holding (shares) | Holding (%) |
| 32Red | Edward Ware (ce) | 24 Sep 14 | 87,470 | 56.88 | 49,749 | 18,784,832 | 25.495 |
| Acal | Graham Williams | 22 Sep 14 | 21,000 | 241 | 50,610 | 74,900 | 0.119 |
| Acal | Graham Williams | 19 Sep 14 | 15,000 | 230 | 34,500 | 53,900 | 0.085 |
| Braveheart Investment | Trevor Brown | 22 Sep 14 | 25,000 | 15 | 3,750 | 7,290,233 | 26.945 |
| Braveheart Investment | Trevor Brown | 22 Sep 14 | 406,250 | 14.5 | 58,906 | 7,265,233 | 26.853 |
| Burford Capital | Hugh Wilson | 19 Sep 14 | 50,000 | 123 | 61,500 | 200,000 | 0.098 |
| Cambian | Anne Marie Carrie | 22 Sep 14 | 4,694 | 213 | 9,998 | 4,694 | 0.003 |
| Cambridge Cognition Holdings | Nick Walters (cfo) | 23 Sep 14 | 47,000 | 59.8 | 28,106 | 47,000 | 0.278 |
| Cambridge Cognition Holdings | Dr. Nick Kerton (ce) | 23 Sep 14 | 58,000 | 59.8 | 34,684 | 72,285 | 0.427 |
| Capital Lease Aviation | Peter Freeman | 22 Sep 14 | 10,000 | 20 | 2,000 | 119,000 | 0.123 |
| China Chaintek United Co | William Knight (ch) | 23 Sep 14 | 2,305 | 86 | 1,982 | 11,250 | 0.020 |
| Connemara Mining Co * | James Finn | 24 Sep 14 | 1,250,000 | 2 | 25,000 | 5,283,001 | 9.471 |
| Connemara Mining Co * | Dr John Teeling (ch & md) | 24 Sep 14 | 1,250,000 | 2 | 25,000 | 5,270,001 | 9.448 |
| easyJet | J Browett | 24 Sep 14 | 1,100 | 1,307 | 14,377 | 5,412 | 0.001 |
| easyJet ♥ | John Barton (ch) | 24 Sep 14 | 4,000 | 1,304 | 52,146 | 24,000 | 0.006 |
| Gable Holdings Inc | Mike Hirschfield (fd) | 19 Sep 14 | 15,000 | 72.4 | 10,860 | 397,650 | 0.294 |
| Gable Holdings Inc | Mike Hirschfield (fd) | 19 Sep 14 | 14,500 | 70 | 10,150 | 382,650 | 0.283 |
| Gable Holdings Inc | William Dewsall (ce) | 19 Sep 14 | 35,000 | 71.38 | 24,981 | 24,674,467 | 18.234 |
| Gable Holdings Inc | Jost Pilgrim | 19 Sep 14 | 20,000 | 68.5 | 13,700 | 50,000 | 0.037 |
| GLI Finance | Patrick Firth (ch) | 18 Sep 14 | 4,407 | 54.25 | 2,391 | 221,781 | 0.157 |
| GLI Finance | Geoff Miller | 18 Sep 14 | 16,280 | 54.25 | 8,832 | 1,643,821 | 1.166 |
| Griffin Mining | Adam Usdan | 18 Sep 14 | 350,000 | 37.5 | 131,250 | 29,144,113 | 16.278 |
| Hilton Food | Sir David Naish (ch) | 22 Sep 14 | 5,000 | 433.5 | 21,675 | 60,000 | 0.083 |
| Hydrodec | Lord Moynihan (ch) | 24 Sep 14 | 1,000,000 | 10.625 | 106,250 | 9,897,749 | 1.326 |
| IFG | John Gallagher (ch) | 24 Sep 14 | 3,624,852 | 121 | 4,386,071 | 10,166,819 | 9.700 |
| Immedia | Trevor Brookes (ce) | 18 Sep 14 | 35,000 | 14.26 | 4,991 | 2,644,700 | 18.168 |
| Inmarsat | Simon Bax | 24 Sep 14 | 2,000 | 719.5 | 14,390 | 5,000 | 0.001 |
| Inmarsat ♥ | Simon Bax | 24 Sep 14 | 2,000 | 719.9 | 14,398 | 7,000 | 0.002 |
| Intu Properties ♥ | Richard Gordon | 24 Sep 14 | 5,000 | 330 | 16,500 | 7,004,818 | 0.534 |
| JPMorgan Brazil Investment Trust | Prof VG Bulmer-Thomas | 23 Sep 14 | 7,800 | 66.2 | 5,164 | 116,100 | 0.230 |
| Kingfisher | Karen Witts (fd) | 22 Sep 14 | 7,926 | 313.66 | 24,861 | 110,003 | 0.005 |
| Kofax | Joe Rose | 18 Sep 14 | 10,000 | 475.25 | 47,525 | 120,000 | 0.130 |
| Micro Focus International | Richard Atkins | 24 Sep 14 | 3,672 | 1,024 | 37,595 | 3,672 | 0.003 |
| Micro Focus International ♥ | Richard Atkins | 24 Sep 14 | 2,214 | 1,024 | 22,668 | 5,886 | 0.004 |
| Monitise | Peter Ayliffe (ch) | 18 Sep 14 | 270,270 | 27.75 | 75,000 | 520,270 | 0.027 |
| Monitise | Paulette Garafalo | 19 Sep 14 | 20,500 | 29.5 | 6,048 | 20,500 | 0.001 |
| Monitise | Amanda Burton | 19 Sep 14 | 103,435 | 28.93 | 29,924 | 261,884 | 0.013 |
| Moss Bros | Maurice Helfgott | 23 Sep 14 | 15,551 | 95.89 | 14,912 | 365,551 | 0.363 |
| Moss Bros | Zoe Morgan | 22 Sep 14 | 10,100 | 93.47 | 9,440 | 60,524 | 0.060 |
| Moss Bros | Zoe Morgan | 22 Sep 14 | 2,649 | 93.45 | 2,475 | 50,424 | 0.050 |
| Moss Bros ♥ | Maurice Helfgott | 24 Sep 14 | 15,511 | 96.14 | 14,912 | 399,700 | 0.397 |
| Moss Bros ♥ | Zoe Morgan | 22 Sep 14 | 3,180 | 93.47 | 2,972 | 63,704 | 0.063 |
| Mothercare | Lee Ginsberg | 23 Sep 14 | 5,700 | 237.37 | 13,530 | 5,700 | 0.006 |
| NetDimensions (Holdings) † | Jay Shaw (ce) | 23 Sep 14 | 1,500 | 75 | 1,125 | 4,913,250 | 12.692 |
| Norcros | Martin Towers (ch) | 19 Sep 14 | 120,000 | 16.22 | 19,464 | 963,635 | 0.164 |
| Oracle Coalfields * | Adrian Loader (ch) | 19 Sep 14 | 800,000 | 1.25 | 10,000 | 4,321,992 | 1.111 |
| Phaunos Timber Fund | Sir Harry Studholme (ch) | 22 Sep 14 | 21,250 | 40 | 8,500 | 401,250 | 0.071 |
| Phaunos Timber Fund | William Vanderfelt | 23 Sep 14 | 1,500,000 | 41 | 615,000 | 6,838,750 | 1.206 |
| Phaunos Timber Fund | William Vanderfelt | 22 Sep 14 | 548,750 | 40 | 219,500 | 5,338,750 | 0.941 |
| Pittards | Jan Holmstrom | 24 Sep 14 | 8,000 | 120 | 9,600 | 20,000 | 0.216 |
| Plethora Solutions Holdings * | Jim Mellon (ch) | 19 Sep 14 | 25,299,490 | 9 | 2,276,954 | 145,812,298 | 23.064 |
| Plethora Solutions Holdings * | Jamie Gibson (ce) | 19 Sep 14 | 25,299,490 | 9 | 2,276,954 | 86,799,490 | 13.730 |
| Rangers International Football Club * | David Somers (ch) | 18 Sep 14 | 14,186 | 20 | 2,837 | 61,186 | 0.075 |
| Rangers International Football Club * | Norman Crighton | 18 Sep 14 | 36,222 | 20 | 7,244 | 96,222 | 0.118 |
| Rangers International Football Club * | Philip Nash | 18 Sep 14 | 54,031 | 20 | 10,806 | 233,031 | 0.286 |
| Rangers International Football Club * | James Easdale | 18 Sep 14 | 215,606 | 20 | 43,121 | 572,749 | 0.703 |
| Regenersis | Jog Dhody (cfo) | 24 Sep 14 | 12,500 | 235 | 29,375 | 418,081 | 0.529 |
| Regenersis ♥ | Matthew Peacock (ch) | 24 Sep 14 | 212,000 | 235 | 498,200 | 5,217,651 | 6.603 |
| Regenersis ♥ | Tom Russell | 24 Sep 14 | 212,000 | 235 | 498,200 | 5,217,651 | 6.603 |
| Shaftesbury | Christopher Ward (fd) | 24 Sep 14 | 1,500 | 674.94 | 10,124 | 10,224 | 0.004 |
| Shanta Gold | Anthony Durrant (ch) | 18 Sep 14 | 100,000 | 11.88 | 11,880 | 1,351,212 | 0.291 |
| Standard Life European Private Equity Trust | AWS Barbour | 24 Sep 14 | 11,000 | 226.75 | 24,943 | 66,658 | 0.042 |
| Stilo International | David Ashman (ch) | 19 Sep 14 | 800,000 | 3 | 24,000 | 12,200,000 | 11.110 |
| Strategic Equity Capital | Richard Hills (ch) | 22 Sep 14 | 30,000 | 162.4 | 48,720 | 60,000 | 0.105 |
| Troy Income & Growth Trust | Jann Brown | 23 Sep 14 | 25,000 | 65.48 | 16,370 | 25,000 | 0.010 |
| Xchanging | Geoff Unwin (ch) | 23 Sep 14 | 35,000 | 185 | 64,750 | 305,908 | 0.125 |
| Xchanging | Geoff Unwin (ch) | 24 Sep 14 | 15,000 | 185 | 27,750 | 320,908 | 0.131 |
| Sells | |||||||
| Company | Director | Date | No of shares | Price (p) | Value (£) | Holding (shares) | Holding (%) |
| Baronsmead VCT | Peter Lawrence (ch) | 22 Sep 14 | 11,224 | 71.1 | 7,980 | 1,084,836 | 1.032 |
| Baronsmead VCT ♥ | Peter Lawrence (ch) | 22 Sep 14 | 11,458 | 71.1 | 8,147 | 1,073,378 | 1.021 |
| Cropper (James) | Patrick Willink | 22 Sep 14 | 3,500 | 406 | 14,210 | 43,074 | 0.480 |
| HSBC Holdings | Iain Mackay (fd) | 23 Sep 14 | 48,000 | 651.07 | 312,514 | 40,382 | <0.001 |
| NetDimensions (Holdings) | Roger Durn (ch) | 24 Sep 14 | 20,000 | 69.5 | 13,900 | 111,000 | 0.287 |
| SThree | Gary Elden (ce) | 23 Sep 14 | 33,613 | 345.04 | 115,977 | 3,217,789 | 2.544 |
| Thorntons | KG Edelman | 22 Sep 14 | 66,547 | 106 | 70,540 | 0 | <0.001 |
| * placing/tender/open offer ♥ spouse/connected party † ADR | |||||||
