Movie stars get paid millions. So, too, it seems do film distributors. Chief executive Darren Throop and Patrice Theroux, who heads up the film division, have made a fortune running Entertainment One (ETO) - the company behind Peppa Pig. They have now sold shares worth almost £4.3m since the selling began a few weeks ago, only six months after joining finance boss Giles Willits in offloading a total of 2m at 191p.
Incredibly, Mr Theroux's latest clearout is not over. He's already sold a £1.36m stake, but admitted in a statement that he would sell 1.5m shares this time. That leaves £1.2m of shares still to go and an obvious stock overhang. We do, however, have it on good authority that there is nothing sinister behind the disposals. Certainly, last month's half-year results were strong. Pro forma underlying cash profit jumped 43 per cent and further savings from the Alliance Films acquisition should feed through over the next few months.
Investec Securities expects adjusted EPS to grow 25 per cent in the year to end-March 2014 and by 11 per cent the year after. It's likely the company will pay a first full-year dividend, too - good news for Mr Throop and Mr Theroux who still own over £29m of shares between them. At 240p, up five-fold since we said buy (39p, 20 November 2009), the shares trade on little over 12 times earnings. This story isn't over. Buy.
Daily Mail editor sells up
Daily Mail & General Trust (DMGT) executive director Paul Dacre has sold his last remaining shares in the publishing conglomerate - unloading 37,861 shares at 918p each. Mr Dacre is also editor-in-chief of the Daily Mail and the sale raised speculation about his future. In 2011, he agreed to a change in the terms of his employment in a deal that expired on 14 November, the date of his 65th birthday. Although group chairman Viscount Rothermere says he has agreed to a new contract.
The share sale comes about a week after the company announced a 6 per cent rise in underlying operating profit for the year to end-September. Moreover, the day before Mr Dacre's disposal, Viscount Rothermere sold 105,306 non-voting shares at 900.5p each - although he still retains 66.15m shares. While, last July, the Rothermere family trust strengthened its hold on the company - by purchasing voting shares held by a trust representing his uncle. That took his voting stake from 59.9 per cent to 89.2 per cent. In October, following a scheme of arrangement, all the outstanding ordinary shares not owned by the trust were acquired and subsequently de-listed.
After rising roughly 70 per cent in the past year to 915p, the shares now trade on a demanding 17 times 2014’s forecast earnings - that's well up with events. Hold.
BUYS:
| Company | Director | Date | No of shares | Price (p) | Value (£) | Holding (shares) | Holding (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3Legs Resources | Kamlesh Parmar (ce) | 28 Nov 13 | 22,000 | 22.8 | 5,016 | 3,448,916 | 4.06 |
| Alent | Steve Corbett (ce) | 04 Dec 13 | 10,000 | 330.38 | 33,038 | 132,392 | 0.05 |
| Anglo Pacific † | Michael Blyth | 02 Dec 13 | 3,000 | 199.78 | 5,993 | 10,000 | 0.01 |
| Ariana Resources | Michael de Villiers (ch) | 29 Nov 13 | 950,000 | 1.15 | 10,925 | 10,000,000 | 1.80 |
| Ariana Resources † | Kerim Sener | 03 Dec 13 | 800,000 | 1.25 | 10,000 | 7,499,091 | 1.35 |
| Ariana Resources † | William Payne | 29 Nov 13 | 1,000,000 | 1.18 | 11,800 | 2,557,178 | 0.46 |
| Asian Plantations † | Dennis Melka (ce) | 28 Nov 13 | 14,000 | 200 | 28,000 | 2,430,000 | 5.20 |
| Assura | Jenefer Greenwood | 02 Dec 13 | 51,279 | 39 | 19,999 | 51,279 | 0.01 |
| Biome Technologies | John Standen (ch) | 28 Nov 13 | 5,575 | 152 | 8,474 | 35,519 | 1.52 |
| Biome Technologies † | John Standen (ch) | 28 Nov 13 | 5,575 | 152 | 8,474 | 41,094 | 1.76 |
| Brown (N) | Andrew Higginson (ch) | 28 Nov 13 | 400 | 531.36 | 2,125 | 84,557 | 0.03 |
| Close Brothers | Elizabeth Lee | 02 Dec 13 | 191 | 1,352 | 2,583 | 34,728 | 0.02 |
| Cluff Natural Resources * | NW Berry | 29 Nov 13 | 500,000 | 3 | 15,000 | 900,000 | 0.58 |
| Cluff Natural Resources * | JG Cluff (ch & ce) | 29 Nov 13 | 500,000 | 3 | 15,000 | 11,567,914 | 7.46 |
| Cluff Natural Resources * | Earl De Le Warr | 29 Nov 13 | 666,666 | 3 | 20,000 | 2,466,666 | 1.59 |
| Croma Security Solutions | Nicholas Hewson | 02 Dec 13 | 18,500 | 26.5 | 4,903 | 189,815 | 1.28 |
| Duet Real Estate Finance | David Moore | 04 Dec 13 | 21,351 | 86.75 | 18,522 | 39,329 | 0.05 |
| Eland Oil & Gas | George Maxwell (cfo) | 04 Dec 13 | 24,203 | 94.56 | 22,886 | 400,000 | 0.30 |
| Fisher (James) & Sons | Charles Rice (ch) | 04 Dec 13 | 836 | 1,150 | 9,614 | 12,219 | 0.02 |
| Frontier Developments | David Gammon (ch) | 03 Dec 13 | 5,000 | 99 | 4,950 | 229,720 | 0.74 |
| Frontier Developments | Dr Jonathan Milner | 03 Dec 13 | 90,000 | 99.4 | 89,460 | 662,104 | 2.13 |
| Hargreaves Lansdown | Stephen Robertson | 04 Dec 13 | 2,476 | 1,205 | 29,836 | 19,390 | 0.00 |
| IS Solutions | Barrie Clark (ch) | 29 Nov 13 | 20,000 | 51 | 10,200 | 567,500 | 2.23 |
| Just Retirement | Keith Nicholson | 02 Dec 13 | 14,751 | 201.85 | 29,775 | 28,084 | 0.01 |
| LondonMetric Property † | Philip Watson | 29 Nov 13 | 80,000 | 130.95 | 104,760 | 174,000 | 0.03 |
| Marston's | Nick Backhouse | 03 Dec 13 | 25,000 | 149.63 | 37,408 | 25,000 | 0.00 |
| NMC Health | Jonathan Bomford | 28 Nov 13 | 10,000 | 413.45 | 41,345 | 10,000 | 0.01 |
| Petra Diamonds | Alexander Hamilton | 04 Dec 13 | 30,000 | 108.7 | 32,610 | 100,000 | 0.02 |
| ProPhotonix | Vincent Thompson | 04 Dec 13 | 350,000 | 1.44 | 5,040 | 351,450 | 0.67 |
| Proxama † | David Bailey (ch) | 03 Dec 13 | 500,000 | 2.88 | 14,375 | 6,524,126 | 0.84 |
| Redrow | Andrew Hewson | 02 Dec 13 | 3,600 | 276.2 | 9,943 | 11,350 | 0.00 |
| Rurelec | Peter Earl (ce) | 04 Dec 13 | 250,000 | 13.25 | 33,125 | 6,900,000 | 1.24 |
| Seeing Machines * | K Kroeger (ce) | 04 Dec 13 | 680,000 | 5 | 34,000 | 7,878,607 | 1.38 |
| Senior | Derek Harding (fd) | 04 Dec 13 | 20,000 | 286.9 | 57,380 | 20,000 | 0.00 |
| Shaftesbury | Christopher Ward (fd) | 02 Dec 13 | 1,663 | 601.25 | 9,999 | 7,111 | 0.00 |
| Shaftesbury | Dermot Mathias | 03 Dec 13 | 8,208 | 605.75 | 49,720 | 16,208 | 0.01 |
| Sigma Capital | Graeme Hogg | 28 Nov 13 | 116,000 | 30 | 34,800 | 513,429 | 1.12 |
| Sigma Capital | Graham Barnet (ce) | 03 Dec 13 | 26,666 | 37.5 | 10,000 | 7,548,237 | 16.45 |
| Sigma Capital | John Hamilton | 03 Dec 13 | 100,000 | 37 | 37,000 | 385,714 | 0.84 |
| Sigma Capital | Bill MacLeod | 28 Nov 13 | 166,000 | 30 | 49,800 | 766,000 | 1.67 |
| St Ives | B Gordon | 28 Nov 13 | 10,000 | 178.81 | 17,881 | 10,000 | 0.01 |
| Thomas Cook | Warren Tucker | 28 Nov 13 | 30,800 | 169 | 52,052 | 30,800 | 0.00 |
| Utilitywise | Jeremy Middleton | 02 Dec 13 | 119,050 | 212 | 252,386 | 475,110 | 0.66 |
| Vislink | John Hawkins (ch) | 02 Dec 13 | 65,439 | 45.5 | 29,775 | 214,122 | 0.19 |
| WYG | Paul Hamer (ce) | 02 Dec 13 | 9,788 | 109 | 10,669 | 126,842 | 0.20 |
| WYG | David Jeffcoat | 02 Dec 13 | 27,278 | 109.4 | 29,842 | 190,264 | 0.29 |
| ZincOx Resources * | Rod Beddows | 03 Dec 13 | 400,000 | 15.5 | 62,000 | 522,500 | 0.39 |
| ZincOx Resources * | Andrew Woollett (ch) | 03 Dec 13 | 400,000 | 15.5 | 62,000 | 4,173,643 | 3.08 |
| ZincOx Resources * | Gautam Dalal | 03 Dec 13 | 160,000 | 15.5 | 24,800 | 560,000 | 0.41 |
SELLS:
| Company | Director | Date | No of shares | Price (p) | Value (£) | Holding (shares) | Holding (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daily Mail and General Trust | Paul Dacre | 28 Nov 13 | 37,861 | 918 | 347,564 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Daily Mail and General Trust | Viscount Rothermere | 27 Nov 13 | 105,306 | 900.5 | 948,281 | 66,153,246 | 18.72 |
| dotDigital | Simon C Bird | 03 Dec 13 | 2,000,000 | 26 | 520,000 | 33,776,667 | 12.14 |
| dotDigital | Ian Taylor | 03 Dec 13 | 2,000,000 | 26 | 520,000 | 41,776,667 | 15.01 |
| Entertainment One | Darren Throop (ce) | 29 Nov 13 | 517,302 | 241.1 | 1,247,215 | 8,400,000 | 3.00 |
| Entertainment One | Darren Throop (ce) | 28 Nov 13 | 69,239 | 239.2 | 165,620 | 8,917,302 | 3.19 |
| Entertainment One | Patrice Theroux | 05 Dec 13 | 665,462 | 240.1 | 1,597,774 | 3,677,651 | 1.40 |
| Entertainment One | Patrice Theroux | 06 Dec 13 | 75,000 | 240.1 | 180,075 | 3,857,726 | 1.40 |
| Entertainment One | Patrice Theroux | 09 Dec 13 | 259,538 | 239.25 | 620,945 | 3,418,113 | 1.40 |
| Hangar8 | Dustin Dryden (ce) | 29 Nov 13 | 750,000 | 205 | 1,537,500 | 3,266,933 | 34.62 |
| Lancashire Holdings † | Neil McConachie | 02 Dec 13 | 35,000 | 777.8 | 272,230 | 40,000 | 0.02 |
| PayPoint | David Morrison | 29 Nov 13 | 700,000 | 1,050 | 7,350,000 | 2,464,008 | 3.63 |
| Software Radio Technology | Neil Peniket | 29 Nov 13 | 200,000 | 27 | 54,000 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Utilitywise | Richard Feigen (ch) | 02 Dec 13 | 166,666 | 212 | 353,332 | 66,667 | 0.09 |
* placing † spouse/connected party
Key to abbreviations: ch = chairman; ce = chief executive; cfo = chief financial officer; fd = finance director; coo = chief operating officer; cs =company secretary; md = managing director
