Stagecoach boss buys £3m worth

Stagecoach chief executive Brian Souter has taken advantage of a tumbling share price to buy nearly £3m worth of shares in the bus and train group.

The purchases, in two tranches at 139p, take Souter's stake in the firm he founded to 14.85%.

Stagecoach's share price has fallen by more than 40% this year after another hefty fall on Wednesday when it cautioned over the 2009/10 financial performance of its rail businesses.

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"Based on our current assessment of the various risks and opportunities facing our rail businesses, we are likely to see downward pressure on 2009/10 rail profits," said the group.

Pre-tax profit rose to £105.2m in the six month ended 31 October compared with £84.6m last time on revenue of £1,045m from £820.8m previously. The interim dividend increased by 33% to 1.8p per share.

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