Following her appointment to the board on 12 March, Cindy Rose, non-executive director at WPP (WPP), has purchased 8,000 shares at an average price of 951p. She joins the group at a somewhat unsettled time, during a three-year strategy to return to sustainable growth.
The recent first-quarter trading update was not exactly inspiring. With significant client losses, like-for-like revenue less pass-through costs slipped by 2.8 per cent, largely due to weakness in North America. Not entirely unanticipated, the underwhelming US performance was in line with the group’s budget, with measures already in place to turn the region around.
Chief executive Mark Read acknowledges that “it will take time to address the company’s legacy issues”. With some tentative signs of a recovery, patient investors could well be rewarded. Aided by the disposal of non-core assets and subsidiaries, net debt has improved by 16 per cent to £4.62bn. Newly formed agencies are showing promise, with the recent Wunderman Thompson merger winning Duracell’s creative international account.
| Buys | |||||||
| Company | Director | Date | No of shares | Price (p) | Value (£) | Holding (shares) | Holding (%) |
| Adept Technology | Philip John Race (ce) | 10 May 19 | 2,778 | 360 | 10,001 | 2,778 | 0.012 |
| Air Partner | Edmond William Warner (ch) | 13 May 19 | 25,000 | 88 | 22,000 | 25,000 | 0.048 |
| Air Partner | Edmond William Warner (ch) | 13 May 19 | 25,000 | 88.5 | 22,125 | 50,000 | 0.096 |
| Air Partner | Edmond William Warner (ch) | 13 May 19 | 25,000 | 92 | 23,000 | 75,000 | 0.144 |
| Air Partner | Joanne Elizabeth Estell (cfo) | 13 May 19 | 11,363 | 88 | 9,999 | 11,363 | 0.022 |
| Air Partner | Paul Bernard Dollman | 13 May 19 | 44,000 | 89 | 39,160 | 44,000 | 0.084 |
| Alumasc | Jonathan Peter Pither | 09 May 19 | 20,000 | 92.5 | 18,500 | 318,986 | 0.883 |
| Barclays | Crawford Scott Gillies | 09 May 19 | 30,000 | 158.04 | 47,412 | 122,172 | 0.001 |
| Bidstack * | Donald John Stewart (ch) | 14 May 19 | 160,000 | 12.5 | 20,000 | 1,149,733 | 0.478 |
| Bidstack * | John McIntosh (fd) | 14 May 19 | 200,000 | 12.5 | 25,000 | 200,000 | 0.083 |
| BT ♥ | Matthew Key | 13 May 19 | 18,500 | 204.7 | 37,870 | 49,500 | 0.000 |
| Card Factory | Karen Hubbard (ce) | 15 May 19 | 8,412 | 187.813 | 15,799 | 138,822 | 0.041 |
| Diageo | Javier Ferran (ch) | 10 May 19 | 254 | 3258 | 8,275 | 216,677 | 0.009 |
| EnQuest | Amjad Bseisu (ce) | 10 May 19 | 483,688 | 19.7 | 95,287 | 159,789,240 | 9.430 |
| Hammerson | Andrew James Formica | 09 May 19 | 22,000 | 289.595 | 63,711 | 44,000 | 0.006 |
| Hammerson | David John Atkins (ce) | 14 May 19 | 17,000 | 295.1 | 50,167 | 1,166,437 | 0.152 |
| Indivior | Lorna Parker | 13 May 19 | 11,529 | 43.3655 | 5,000 | 17,608 | 0.002 |
| InnovaDerma | Ross Martin Hilton Andrews | 13 May 19 | 15,000 | 94.4 | 14,160 | 30,000 | 0.207 |
| John Lewis of Hungerford | Gary O'Brien (ch) | 10 May 19 | 5,382,315 | 0.55 | 29,603 | 5,382,315 | 2.882 |
| Kenmare Resources | Anthony McCluskey (fd) | 09 May 19 | 8,858 | 189.5 | 16,786 | 53,215 | 0.049 |
| Land Securities | Nicholas Cadbury | 14 May 19 | 3,000 | 887.55 | 26,627 | 7,481 | 0.001 |
| Minds + Machines Ltd | Henry Arthur James Turcan | 14 May 19 | 500,000 | 5.5 | 27,500 | 7,845,000 | 0.985 |
| Phoenix Global Resources | Sir Michael Derek Vaughan Rake (ch) | 10 May 19 | 130,000 | 20.68 | 26,884 | 460,000 | 0.017 |
| Pittards | Richard Briere (cfo) | 10 May 19 | 7,500 | 68 | 5,100 | 10,000 | 0.072 |
| Polar Capital Holdings | Quintin Rupert Salter Price | 09 May 19 | 10,000 | 600 | 60,000 | 10,000 | 0.010 |
| Scottish American Investment Co (The) | Karyn Elizabeth Lamont | 15 May 19 | 2,000 | 383.86 | 7,677 | 2,000 | 0.001 |
| Seneca Global Income & Growth Trust | Susan Inglis | 09 May 19 | 20,000 | 180.92 | 36,184 | 20,000 | 0.042 |
| Sigma Capital | David Sigsworth (ch) | 10 May 19 | 45,000 | 111 | 49,950 | 716,971 | 0.803 |
| Strategic Equity Capital | David John Morrison | 09 May 19 | 10,000 | 222 | 22,200 | 10,000 | 0.016 |
| Temple Bar Investment Trust | Arthur T. Copple (ch) | 15 May 19 | 9,666 | 1294 | 125,078 | 72,309 | 0.108 |
| Trinity Exploration & Production | Angus Christian Winther | 14 May 19 | 427,350 | 11.7 | 50,000 | 30,102,994 | 7.838 |
| Tyman | Jason Ashton (cfo) | 10 May 19 | 12,500 | 246.5 | 30,813 | 12,500 | 0.006 |
| Tyman | Jo C Hallas (ce) | 10 May 19 | 48,162 | 246 | 118,479 | 48,162 | 0.025 |
| Victrex | Jakob Oskar Sigurdsson | 14 May 19 | 3,000 | 2091.76 | 62,753 | 11,200 | 0.013 |
| Wey Education | Anthony Gilbert Knowles | 14 May 19 | 133,186 | 75 | 99,890 | 133,186 | 0.102 |
| Woodbois Ltd | Miles Christian Pelham (ch) | 15 May 19 | 1,000,000 | 6.5 | 65,000 | 1,000,000 | 0.265 |
| WPP | Cindy Helen Rose | 13 May 19 | 8,000 | 951.45 | 76,116 | 8,000 | 0.001 |
| Yourgene Health | Dr. Stephen Little | 09 May 19 | 448,452 | 11.2 | 50,227 | 6,026,736 | 1.006 |
| Sells | |||||||
| Company | Director | Date | No of shares | Price (p) | Value (£) | Holding (shares) | Holding (%) |
| Brewin Dolphin Holdings † | Siobhan Boylan (cfo) | 15 May 19 | 18,134 | 303.2 | 54,982 | 20,282 | 0.007 |
| Fiske | Alexander Rupert Fiske Harrison | 10 May 19 | 34,000 | 60 | 20,400 | 265,000 | 2.281 |
| Grafton † | David Llewelyn Arnold (cfo) | 10 May 19 | 23,641 | 904.5 | 213,833 | 95,304 | 0.040 |
| Grafton † | Gavin Slark (ce) | 10 May 19 | 41,421 | 904.5 | 374,653 | 375,280 | 0.158 |
| James Halstead | Michael James Halstead | 10 May 19 | 100,000 | 510 | 510,000 | 808,117 | 0.388 |
| Morrison (Wm) Supermarkets | Trevor Strain (cfo) | 13 May 19 | 200,000 | 212.811 | 425,622 | 528,911 | 0.022 |
| Reckitt Benckiser † | Adrian Hennah (cfo) | 10 May 19 | 13,701 | 6143.02 | 841,655 | 120,142 | 0.017 |
| Reckitt Benckiser † | Rakesh Kapoor (ce) | 10 May 19 | 73,067 | 6143.02 | 4,488,520 | 710,987 | 0.100 |
| Savills † | Mark Ridley (ce) | 09 May 19 | 3,733 | 884.2013 | 33,007 | 182,961 | 0.128 |
| Savills † | Simon James Blouet Shaw (cfo) | 09 May 19 | 7,926 | 884.2013 | 70,082 | 155,864 | 0.109 |
* placing † automatic sell provision to cover tax and/or discharge tax liabilities ♥ spouse/relative | |||||||
