Persimmon non-executive Jonathan Davie started building a stake in the housebuilder with the purchase of £42,000 in shares.
Davie, who was appointed to the board on January 1, bought 10,000 shares at 419.9p a time.
His purchase comes soon after the company said it completed 8,976 house sales last year and has seen a 7% increase in sales and steady prices since the start of this year.
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The number of legal completions was down 12% on the 10,202 achieved in 2008, but in line with the figure flagged in an update in January. The average selling price dropped to £160,513 from £172,994.
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There was a pre-tax profit of £7m before exceptional items and goodwill charges, reflecting a stronger second half when profits jumped to £23.7m from a £16.7m loss the year before.
Davie is the chairman of the spread-betting firm IG Index.
Top Director Buys
GlobeOp Financial Services (GO.) Director name: Mr Edward AnnunziatoAmount purchased: 48,000 @ 240.00p Value: £115,200
E2V Technologies (E2V) Director name: Mr Chris GeogheganAmount purchased: 123,512 @ 40.00p Value: £49,405
Persimmon (PSN) Director name: Mr Jonathan R DavieAmount purchased: 10,000 @ 419.92p Value: £41,992
Restaurant Group (RTN) Director name: Mr Robert MorganAmount purchased: 12,494 @ 211.00p Value: £26,362
Corin Group (CRG) Director name: Mr Michael R D RollerAmount purchased: 40,000 @ 58.50p Value: £23,400
Corin Group (CRG) Director name: Mr David YoungAmount purchased: 40,000 @ 58.00p Value: £23,200
Trifast (TRI) Director name: Mr Neil ChapmanAmount purchased: 80,000 @ 21.85p Value: £17,480
Ricardo Group (RCDO) Director name: Mr John Michael HarperAmount purchased: 5,000 @ 272.00p Value: £13,600
Xchanging (XCH) Director name: Ms Patricia O'DriscollAmount purchased: 7,000 @ 191.70p Value: £13,419
Top Director Sells
Serco Group (SRP) Director name: Mr Kevin S BeestonAmount sold: 283,760 @ 565.07p Value: £1,603,443
Serco Group (SRP) Director name: Mr Christopher R HymanAmount sold: 283,760 @ 565.07p Value: £1,603,443
Whitbread (WTB) Director name: Mr Christopher C B RogersAmount sold: 48,563 @ 1,447.70p Value: £703,047
Whitbread (WTB) Director name: Mr Alan C ParkerAmount sold: 37,701 @ 1,447.70p Value: £545,797
Serco Group (SRP) Director name: Mr Andrew JennerAmount sold: 72,033 @ 565.07p Value: £407,037
Whitbread (WTB) Director name: Mr Patrick DempseyAmount sold: 16,154 @ 1,447.70p Value: £233,861
Whitbread (WTB) Director name: Mr Simon BarrattAmount sold: 13,195 @ 1,447.70p Value: £191,024
Invista Real Estate Investment Management Holdings (INRE) Director name: Mr Mark LawsonAmount sold: 200,000 @ 49.00p Value: £98,000
Camco International (CAO) Director name: Mr Scott J McGregorAmount sold: 600,000 @ 13.75p Value: £82,500
Share Plc (SHRE) Director name: Mr Richard TolkienAmount sold: 79,889 @ 27.00p Value: £21,570
