Connaught chairman sells big chunk

Mark Tincknell, chairman of the social housing group Connaught, has walked away with more than £2m after selling a big chunk of his stake in the company.

He disposed of 650,000 shares in the FTSE 250-listed firm at 355p a time and now has about 678,000.

Shares in Connaught have held up relatively well amid difficult conditions for most companies over the past year, largely due to the firm's reliance on publicly-funded projects.

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Last month it posted a 39% surge in pre-tax profit for the half-year as revenue grew in both social housing and compliance businesses.

Profit before tax for the six months came in at £13.5m from £9.7m in the same period last year on revenue that increased 19% to £304m.

Commenting on the results, Tincknell said: "Connaught is well positioned in two highly defensive and fragmented markets where we have built a strong competitive position from which to grow share through our integrated services and efficiency-led approach."

Connaught's social housing services include maintenance and estate cleaning. Its compliance business helps organisations manage health, safety and environmental risks.

Tincknell, 47, has been with Connaught since the early 1980s.

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