Only a matter of days after Card Factory (CARD) released a disappointing third-quarter update – which prompted a 16 per cent nosedive in the group’s share price – both chief executive Karen Hubbard and non-executive director Roger Whiteside – also chief executive of bakery chain Greggs (GRG) – have added to their shareholdings.
On 11 January 2018, the group said ongoing margin pressure was the result of the “outperformance” of lower-margin non-card products over the festive period, which has only added to cost pressures inflicted by exchange rates, wages and rate rises. As a result, underlying cash profit for the year are expected to come in lower than previously expected, between £93m and £95m. From an investor’s point of view, this puts Card Factory’s reputation as an income stock under threat: several analysts are forecasting a serious cut to special returns from FY2019.
| Buys | |||||||
| Company | Director | Date | No of shares | Price (p) | Value (£) | Holding (shares) | Holding (%) |
| Advanced Oncotherapy | Enrico Vanni | 11 Jan 18 | 40,000 | 54.5 | 21,800 | 1,263,946 | 1.562 |
| AfriTin Mining | Anthony Viljoen (ceo) | 17 Jan 18 | 207,290 | 2.4 | 4,975 | 2,723,942 | 0.916 |
| Arena Events♥ | Greg Lawless (ceo) | 11 Jan 18 | 210,921 | 55 | 116,007 | 6,640,755 | 5.668 |
| Arena Events | Greg Lawless (ceo) | 11 Jan 18 | 2,302,620 | 55 | 1,266,441 | 6,429,834 | 5.488 |
| Aukett Swanke | Nicholas Thompson (ceo) | 11 Jan 18 | 50,000 | 2.5 | 1,250 | 16,652,411 | 10.079 |
| Aukett Swanke | Nicholas Thompson (ceo) | 15 Jan 18 | 25,000 | 2.5 | 625 | 16,677,411 | 10.094 |
| Baillie Gifford Shin Nippon | Neil Donaldson | 16 Jan 18 | 1,619 | 921.75 | 14,923 | 11,984 | 0.026 |
| British Empire Trust | Susan Noble (ch) | 17 Jan 18 | 1,925 | 748.87 | 14,416 | 10,995 | 0.010 |
| Byotrol | David Traynor (ceo) | 17 Jan 18 | 4,840,628 | 3.0987 | 149,997 | 9,691,142 | 2.406 |
| Card Factory | Karen Hubbard (ceo) | 11 Jan 18 | 20,387 | 239.1 | 48,745 | 107,226 | 0.031 |
| Card Factory♥ | Roger Whiteside | 15 Jan 18 | 22,520 | 219.9 | 49,521 | 22,520 | 0.007 |
| Concha | Chris Akers (ch) | 17 Jan 18 | 2,500,000 | 0.19 | 4,750 | 12,500,000 | 0.717 |
| Debenhams | David Adams | 16 Jan 18 | 75,000 | 31.099 | 23,324 | 75,000 | 0.006 |
| Highcroft Investments | Roberta Miles (fd & cs) | 15 Jan 18 | 1,000 | 910 | 9,100 | 5,950 | 0.115 |
| hVIVO | Jamie Ellertson | 11 Jan 18 | 16,401 | 55 | 9,021 | 128,814 | 0.165 |
| hVIVO | Jim Winschel | 11 Jan 18 | 7,274 | 55 | 4,001 | 57,397 | 0.073 |
| Invesco Asia Trust | Neil Rogan | 15 Jan 18 | 10,000 | 310 | 31,000 | 10,000 | 0.014 |
| Jupiter European Opportunities Trust | Andrew Sutch (ch) | 11 Jan 18 | 77 | 768.999 | 592 | 9,477 | 0.008 |
| Keras Resources | Dave Reeves (md) | 12 Jan 18 | 1,000,000 | 0.4 | 4,000 | 354,925,051 | 15.692 |
| Limitless Earth | Guido Contesso (ceo) | 11 Jan 18 | 525,000 | 4.75 | 24,938 | 2,489,217 | 3.806 |
| Management Resource Solutions | Nigel Burton | 17 Jan 18 | 500,000 | 7.298 | 36,490 | 5,500,000 | 3.040 |
| Merlin Entertainments | Trudy Rautio | 16 Jan 18 | 19,000 | 368.316 | 69,980 | 30,250 | 0.003 |
| Mobile Tornado* | Avi Tooba (ceo) | 12 Jan 18 | 1,000,000 | 5 | 50,000 | 4,000,000 | 1.341 |
| Mobile Tornado* | Jeremy Fenn (ch) | 12 Jan 18 | 750,000 | 5 | 37,500 | 12,184,752 | 4.084 |
| Mobile Tornado* | Peter Wilkinson | 12 Jan 18 | 2,000,000 | 5 | 100,000 | 36,146,141 | 12.115 |
| RDI REIT | Donald Grant (cfo) | 16 Jan 18 | 25,000 | 35.95 | 8,988 | 75,000 | 0.004 |
| RDI REIT | Mike Watters (ceo) | 17 Jan 18 | 67,000 | 35.94 | 24,080 | 6,653,428 | 0.349 |
| Seeing Machines* | Mike McAuliffe (ceo) | 17 Jan 18 | 1,000,000 | 5 | 50,000 | 4,867,106 | 0.217 |
| Seeing Machines* | Ken Kroeger (ch) | 17 Jan 18 | 400,000 | 5 | 20,000 | 8,731,393 | 0.390 |
| Seeing Machines* | Yong Kang Ng | 17 Jan 18 | 1,000,000 | 5 | 50,000 | 1,308,605 | 0.058 |
| Sinclair Pharma♥ | Chris Spooner (ceo) | 16 Jan 18 | 200,000 | 23.15 | 46,300 | 10,440,479 | 2.072 |
| Sinclair Pharma | Jeff Thompson | 16 Jan 18 | 200,000 | 23.1 | 46,200 | 350,000 | 0.069 |
| Syncona | Roberta Hutchinson | 17 Jan 18 | 23,140 | 214.5 | 49,635 | 23,140 | 0.004 |
| Thor Mining♥ | Paul Johnson | 16 Jan 18 | 500,000 | 2.5 | 12,500 | 31,627,649 | 5.231 |
| Thor Mining♥ | Paul Johnson | 17 Jan 18 | 372,351 | 2.634 | 9,808 | 32,000,000 | 5.271 |
| TomCo Energy | Chris Brown (ceo) | 13 Jan 18 | 3,943,200 | 3.875 | 152,799 | 3,943,200 | 13.636 |
| URA | Melissa Sturgess-Smith | 17 Jan 18 | 1,000,000 | 0.545 | 5,450 | 23,222,222 | 8.679 |
| United Utilities | Paulette Rowe | 11 Jan 18 | 3,000 | 770.2 | 23,106 | 3,000 | 0.000 |
| VPC Specialty Lending♥ | Richard Levy | 17 Jan 18 | 69,954 | 80.8 | 56,523 | 2,594,011 | 0.701 |
| Xafinity | John Batting | 12 Jan 18 | 74,328 | 163 | 121,155 | 74,328 | 0.036 |
| Sells | |||||||
| Company | Director | Date | No of shares | Price (p) | Value (£) | Holding (shares) | Holding (%) |
| Cropper (James)♥ | Dave Watson (coo) | 16 Jan 18 | 626 | 1,726 | 10,805 | 0 | 0.000 |
| Cropper (James)♥ | Phil Wild (ceo) | 17 Jan 18 | 1,000 | 1,735 | 17,350 | 15,034 | 0.159 |
| Gattaca | Keith Lewis (coo) | 15 Jan 18 | 18,842 | 270 | 50,873 | 411,883 | 1.304 |
| Paragon Banking | Hugo Tudor | 11 Jan 18 | 15,000 | 510.41 | 76,562 | 280,000 | 0.106 |
| Paragon Banking | Hugo Tudor | 11 Jan 18 | 15,000 | 510.85 | 76,628 | 295,000 | 0.112 |
| Paragon Banking | Hugo Tudor | 11 Jan 18 | 20,000 | 513 | 102,600 | 260,000 | 0.099 |
| Paragon Banking | Hugo Tudor | 12 Jan 18 | 35,000 | 508.9025 | 178,116 | 225,000 | 0.085 |
| *Placing/tender/open offer ♥Spouse/connected party | |||||||
