Directors at Pace, the TV set-top box maker, took advantage of a sharp fall in the share price last week to add to their stakes.
The shares dived after figures for 2010 showed that hefty one-off costs cut profits growth to a minimum. The BSkyB supplier also said that a US customer had deferred a big order until next year, when the latest generation of equipment will be available.
Mike McTighe, chairman of Pace, Neil Gaydon, the chief executive, David McKinney, chief operating officer, and Stuart Hall, chief financial officer, each took 10,000 shares at between 183p and 186p.
Of the four directors, McTighe has the biggest stake at 60,000 shares — 0.2% of the company.
Pace’s revenues were up 17.4% to £1.33 billion in 2010, with organic revenues growing 9.7%. Operating profits rose 32% to £92m, though pre-tax profits were up only slightly to £71m after one-off costs of £19m relating to acquisitions and the closure of the European free-to-air business. Despite the setback, Pace is confident about prospects. “The board expects 2011 revenue growth of a similar level to that achieved in 2010,” it said.
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Doughty raises £1m from share sale
Paul Doughty, the finance director of Moneysupermarket.com, the comparison website, has raised nearly £1m from a share sale.
He sold 1.08m shares at 90.1p each, which leaves him with just over 1.8m shares, or 0.36% of the company.
Doughty, who has been on the board since 2007, raised £974,000.
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Moneysupermarket saw improving trends in 2010 in all four of its main divisions, despite tough competition from rivals. Revenue grew 9% to £148.9m and profit before tax more than tripled to £11m.
Directors have in-depth knowledge of their businesses, so it can pay to track their moves. Every week digitallook.com reveals bosses who have bought or sold big stakes.