Directors at Britain's biggest firms are cashing in on a key Brexit rally
The Financial Times reports that FTSE 100 and 250 directors have disposed of a net £10.5 million ($13.5 million) worth of stock since June 27, citing data from broker Olivetree.
The biggest seller was Edward Bonham Carter, the vice-chairman and former CEO of Jupiter Fund Management and brother of actor Helena. He sold £4.2 million worth of Jupiter on July 28.
Other big sellers include Richard Solomons at InterContinental Hotels, who sold £2.5 million of shares this month, and GlaxoSmithKline CEO Andrew Witty, who sold £170,000 on July 27.
This may seem like a worrying sign - executives selling stock in their own companies. But another way of looking at it is they are just taking advantage of a rally for British stock markets.
The FT quotes Bella Brandon, strategist at Olivetree, as saying: "It looks like some directors are taking advantage of the surge higher in equities. We are seeing a number of directors selling more than half a million pounds in shares, which is a significant amount."
The FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 tanked in the wake of Britain's shock decision to leave the European Union on June 23. But after a few sessions of weakness, both stock markets have rallied, with the FTSE 100 far surpassing its level prior to the vote.
Here is how the FTSE 100 looks:
Investing.com
And here is the FTSE 250, which is more weighted towards UK-based companies:
Investing.com
Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets, is calling the FTSE 100 to open 9 points higher at 6,925 on Monday morning.
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