Parker caps Anglo’s sell-off

May 12, 2017

by: Mark Robinson and Emma Powell, Investors Chronicle

Shares in Anglo American have risen 84 per cent base-to-apex within the past 12 months, a reflection of improved commodity pricing combined with cumulative rationalisation measures.

Earlier this year, it was announced that the miner’s chairman, Sir John Parker, had decided to call it a day after an eight-year tenure in which he oversaw the sale of numerous assets deemed surplus to requirements, the latest of which — an 88.2 per cent interest in the Drayton thermal coal mine in New South Wales — was announced this month.

Not all of the sales met with universal shareholder approval, but no one pretends that it has been plain sailing for Sir John since he came on board, particularly given the weakness in underlying markets through 2014-16.

But prices for speciality metals and bulks, most notably iron ore, strengthened considerably through last year. The consequent rise in cash flows, along with the asset sales, enabled the embattled commodities giant to reduce net debt as a proportion of shareholder funds by around two-fifths since the end of 2015. So he leaves the group, if not in rude health, then certainly in better trim than he probably might have thought possible 18 months ago.

Shares in London Stock Exchange rocketed following the announcement of its proposed merger with Deutsche Börse in February last year. Despite the deal finally falling through this April on competition grounds, very little of these gains have fallen out of the share price. Now chief executive Xavier Rolet has sold shares in the group worth £1.8m.

Even without completing the deal, London Stock Exchange looks in pretty good shape. Income from continuing operations was up almost a fifth during the first four months of the year at £459m; information and post-trade services have led the way in terms of revenue growth.

Global clearing business LCH increased revenue by almost a third during this period, thanks to growth in over-the-counter clearing of derivatives contracts through its SwapClear platform. Meanwhile, demand has remained high for information services, with sales up 9 per cent on a like-for-like basis during the first four months of the year. This is largely due to the popularity of FTSE Russell indices.

Directors’ Deals, May 8 2017

Company | Director | Date | No of shares | Price (p) | Value (£) | Holding (shares)
BUY
Abcam | Gavin Wood (cfo) | 2/5/17 | 5,700 | 889.75 | 50,716 | 11,975
Aberdeen Latin American Income Fund | Martin Adams | 2/5/17 | 24,450 | 73 | 17,849 | 74,000
Alliance Trust | Anthony Brooke | 2/5/17 | 10,000 | 685.75 | 68,575 | 13,000
Alliance Trust | Karl Sternberg | 2/5/17 | 3,000 | 687 | 20,610 | 6,092
Barclays | Ian Cheshire | 2/5/17 | 50,000 | 210 | 105,000 | 50,000
Blue Prism | Charmaine Eggberry | 28/4/17 | 9,488 | 670 | 63,570 | 330,000
Character | Jeremiah Healy | 27/4/17 | 5,000 | 470 | 23,500 | 41,000
Character | Mark Dowding (cfo) | 27/4/17 | 8,000 | 470 | 37,600 | 108,000
Connect | David Bauernfeind (cfo) | 27/4/17 | 20,000 | 127.4 | 25,480 | 20,000
Connect | Gary Kennedy (ch) | 28/4/17 | 10,000 | 126.4 | 12,640 | 30,000
Crawshaw | Jim McCarthy | 27/4/17 | 190,000 | 26.5 | 50,350 | 190,000
Falanx* | Mike Read (ch) | 3/5/17 | 727,273 | 6.875 | 50,000 | 1,977,273
Frontier Developments | Charles Cotton | 27/4/17 | 10,000 | 335 | 33,500 | 84,339
Frontier Developments | Charles Cotton | 28/4/17 | 5,000 | 335 | 16,750 | 89,339
JPMorgan US Smaller Companies | Christopher Galleymore | 2/5/17 | 10,000 | 258.375 | 25,838 | 60,000
John Laing | Olivier Brousse (ceo) | 27/4/17 | 6,873 | 289.35 | 19,887 | 168,929
KAZ Minerals | Charles Watson | 28/4/17 | 1,532 | 510.4 | 7,819 | 5,156
LoopUp | Barbara Judge (ch) | 27/4/17 | 10,000 | 155 | 15,500 | 33,754
Man Group | Katharine Barker | 3/5/17 | 40,000 | 153.9466 | 61,579 | 40,000
Mobile Tornado* | Avi Tooba (ceo) | 3/5/17 | 3,000,000 | 5 | 150,000 | 3,000,000
Mobile Tornado* | Jeremy Fenn (ch) | 3/5/17 | 3,000,000 | 5 | 150,000 | 11,434,752
Mobile Tornado* | Peter Wilkinson | 3/5/17 | 6,000,000 | 5 | 300,000 | 34,146,141
Morses Club | Nigel Knowles | 27/4/17 | 12,000 | 134.25 | 16,110 | 35,148
Oakley Capital Investments | Peter Dubens | 28/4/17 | 100,000 | 152.19 | 152,190 | 2,048,167
Proteome Sciences | Martin Diggle | 27/4/17 | 100,000 | 5 | 5,000 | 54,043,715
Proteome Sciences | Martin Diggle | 2/5/17 | 100,000 | 5 | 5,000 | 54,143,715
Taylor Wimpey | Angela Knight | 27/4/17 | 5,000 | 198.87 | 9,944 | 5,000
Tesco | Alison Platt | 3/5/17 | 11,185 | 177.8 | 19,887 | 11,185
Thor Mining | Paul Johnson | 3/5/17 | 500,000 | 0.879 | 4,395 | 8,002,649
Troy Income & Growth Trust | David Garman | 3/5/17 | 30,000 | 79.25 | 23,775 | 100,000
Troy Income & Growth Trust | David Warnock (ch) | 3/5/17 | 100,000 | 79.2 | 79,200 | 500,000
Troy Income & Growth Trust | Roger White | 3/5/17 | 200,000 | 79.25 | 158,500 | 300,000
Troy Income & Growth Trust | Jann Brown | 3/5/17 | 62,563 | 79.5 | 49,738 | 87,563
Unilever | John Rishton | 27/4/17 | 2,000 | 3965.9684 | 79,319 | 2,000
Upland Resources | Bolhassan Di | 27/4/17 | 1,000,000 | 1.29 | 12,900 | 11,096,160
Vesuvius | Holly Koeppel | 27/4/17 | 7,500 | 533.4421 | 40,008 | 7,500
Westmount Energy* | Dermot Corcoran | 3/5/17 | 1,500,000 | 5 | 75,000 | 4,500,000
Westmount Energy* | Gerrard Walsh (ch) | 3/5/17 | 1,550,000 | 5 | 77,500 | 4,650,000
Westmount Energy* | Thomas O’Gorman | 3/5/17 | 1,550,000 | 5 | 77,500 | 4,650,000
WideCells* | David Bridgland (cfo) | 28/4/17 | 80,000 | 12 | 9,600 | 332,552
WideCells* | Graham Hine (ch) | 28/4/17 | 40,000 | 12 | 4,800 | 3,238,698
WideCells* | Marilyn Orcharton | 28/4/17 | 15,000 | 12 | 1,800 | 150,952
WideCells* | Lopes Gil | 28/4/17 | 15,000 | 12 | 1,800 | 8,035,000
WideCells* | João Andrade (ceo) | 28/4/17 | 20,000 | 12 | 2,400 | 8,040,000
SELL
AB Dynamics | Rob Hart (fd) | 3/5/17 | 1,985 | 575 | 11,414 | 17,347
AB Dynamics | Tim Rogers (ceo) | 3/5/17 | 6,000 | 571 | 34,260 | 392,953
Anglo American | John Parker (ch) | 28/4/17 | 62,696 | 1107 | 694,045 | 0
Jupiter Fund Management | Edward Bonham Carter | 27/4/17 | 667,153 | 475 | 3,168,977 | 10,006,892
London Stock Exchange | Xavier Rolet (ceo) | 2/5/17 | 53,500 | 3382 | 1,809,370 | 547,588
Mithras Investment Trust | David Shearer | 27/4/17 | 2,891 | 217.5581 | 6,290 | 6,914
Mithras Investment Trust | John Mackie | 27/4/17 | 2,892 | 217.5581 | 6,292 | 6,912
Mithras Investment Trust | Miriam Greenwood | 27/4/17 | 2,805 | 217.5581 | 6,103 | 6,708
Taylor Wimpey | Michael Hussey | 28/4/17 | 50,000 | 199.8 | 99,900 | 100,000
* Placing/tender/open offer spouse/connected party; Source: Morningstar/Investors Chronicle