Betfair boss spends £1m

published 15 July 2011

Betfair's chairman and co-founder Edward Wray has opened his account at the online gambling group in a big way, splashing out £1m on shares.He took 152,578 at 655.4p a pop. The purchase comes amid a spell of weakness for Betfair's stock price after the mixed full-year results it reported at the end of last month.Full year profitability came in ahead of expectations, though it conceded revenue growth "could have been stronger". Underlying group revenue in the year to 30 April rose 8.1% to £368.6m from £340.9m the year before, while reported revenue jumped 15.4% to £393.3m from £340.9m. Market expectations had been for revenue of £386.2m. Top Director BuysBetfair Group (BET) Director name: Mr Edward WrayAmount purchased: 152,578 @ 655.40p Value: £999,996Carpetright (CPR) Director name: Mr Martin HarrisAmount purchased: 50,000 @ 591.40p Value: £295,700Homeserve (HSV) Director name: Mr Richard HarpinAmount purchased: 37,011 @ 493.60p Value: £182,686Homeserve (HSV) Director name: Mr Jonathan KingAmount purchased: 25,853 @ 493.60p Value: £127,610Homeserve (HSV) Director name: Mr Martin BennettAmount purchased: 22,206 @ 493.60p Value: £109,609Future (FUTR) Director name: Mr Mark WhitelingAmount purchased: 200,000 @ 13.70p Value: £27,400Finsbury Growth & Income Trust (FGT) Director name: Mr David HuntAmount purchased: 5,500 @ 340.40p Value: £18,722Sanderson Group (SND) Director name: Mr David GutteridgeAmount purchased: 45,000 @ 29.83p Value: £13,424Top Director SellsTesco (TSCO) Director name: Mr David T PottsAmount sold: 507,617 @ 405.73p Value: £2,059,554Tesco (TSCO) Director name: Mr David T PottsAmount sold: 150,000 @ 405.73p Value: £608,595