BBA Aviation boss jettisons incentive plan shares

A round-up of the biggest director deals today so far.

Shares in aviation support service group BBA Aviation are a few pence off their 52-week high, so it was not a bad time for Group Chief Executive Simon Pryce to get shot of a pile of shares awarded under the firm's long term incentive and bonus plans.

Pryce jettisoned 323,613 shares at 215.55p each for a total of £697,548, reducing his total holding to 939,874 shares.

The sale was made exactly one month after the aviation support firm boasted a significant rise in both revenue and profit for the year ended December 31st.

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Statutory profit before tax was up 24% from $132m to $163.6m (up 15% to £170.2m before exceptional items), while revenue was up 17% from $1,833.7m to $2,136.7m.

Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation rose 13% from $221m to $250.1m, while basic underlying earnings per share gained 6% from 27.3c to 29c, after the firm continued to outperform the market, albeit at a slower rate than expected.

Speaking at the time, Pryce said: "We will continue to deliver operational improvement, to flex costs and to deploy our available capital to a strong pipeline of attractive investment and consolidation opportunities. Whilst the macro-economic climate remains uncertain, we anticipate making further progress during the year.

"Over the medium-term, the strengths and track record of our business together with the structural drivers of our markets give us continued confidence in the attractive growth prospects for BBA Aviation and our ability to deliver superior through-cycle returns."

Top Director Buys

First Quantum Minerals Ltd. (FQM)

Director name: Mr Michael Martineau

Amount purchased: 1,500 @ 1,189.27p

Value: £17,839

Victoria Oil & Gas (VOG)

Director name: Mr Kevin A Foo

Amount purchased: 657,541 @ 3.80p

Value: £24,987

Charles Taylor Consulting (CTR)

Director name: Mr David Gideon Marock

Amount purchased: 15,000 @ 150.00p

Value: £22,500

WYG (WYG)

Director name: Mr Paul Hamer

Amount purchased: 36,110 @ 54.00p

Value: £19,499

Anglo American (AAL)

Director name: Mr Peter Woicke

Amount purchased: 696 @ 2,468.85p

Value: £17,183

Bunzl (BNZL)

Director name: Mr Patrick Larmon

Amount purchased: 1,083 @ 856.34p

Value: £9,274

Anglo American (AAL)

Director name: Mr Phuthuma F. Nhleko

Amount purchased: 571 @ 2,468.85p

Value: £14,097

Anglo American (AAL)

Director name: Dr Dr Mamphela Ramphele

Amount purchased: 571 @ 2,468.85p

Value: £14,097

WYG (WYG)

Director name: Mr Graham Olver

Amount purchased: 25,000 @ 54.00p

Value: £13,500

Nanoco Group (NANO)

Director name: Mr Michael Edelman

Amount purchased: 15,700 @ 67.38p

Value: £10,579

Top Director Sells

BBA Aviation (BBA)

Director name: Mr Simon Pryce

Amount sold: 323,613 @ 215.55p

Value: £697,548

Henderson Group (HGG)

Director name: Mr David Jacob

Amount sold: 223,881 @ 125.11p

Value: £280,098

Beazley (BEZ)

Director name: Mr Jonathan Gray

Amount sold: 198,750 @ 140.10p

Value: £278,449

Shire Plc (SHP)

Director name: Mr Angus Russell

Amount sold: 12,264 @ 2,014.00p

Value: £246,997

EnQuest (ENQ)

Director name: Dr James Buckee

Amount sold: 177,483 @ 127.80p

Value: £226,823

Travis Perkins (TPK)

Director name: Mr Paul N Hampden Smith

Amount sold: 17,696 @ 1,101.00p

Value: £194,833

Shire Plc (SHP)

Director name: Mr Graham Hetherington

Amount sold: 4,659 @ 2,014.00p

Value: £93,832

SpaceandPeople (SAL)

Director name: Mr Christopher Graham Stainforth

Amount sold: 128,984 @ 67.75p

Value: £87,387

Bodycote (BOY)

Director name: Mr David F Landless

Amount sold: 19,000 @ 387.00p

Value: £73,530

Fisher (James) & Sons (FSJ)

Director name: Mr Nick Henry

Amount sold: 10,000 @ 597.00p

Value: £59,700