German media giant Axel Springer could take advantage of Neil Woodford’s crisis to scoop up more shares in Purplebricks – and even take it off the stock market.
Axel Springer, which owns media brands such as music magazine Rolling Stone and website Business Insider, is ‘open to opportunities’ to buy more shares in the online estate agent, a source close to the company told the Mail.
The German firm said this week that it had bought a 12 per cent stake in Purplebricks from founders Kenny and Michael Bruce, who no longer own any shares.
Axel Springer is now the largest shareholder, with a 26.6 per cent stake, as Woodford revealed he had reduced his holding from 28.9 per cent to 23.9 per cent.
Axel Springer, which owns music magazine Rolling Stone and website Business Insider, is ‘open to opportunities’ to buy more shares in online estate agent Purplebricks
The sale will have freed much-needed cash for Woodford – about £16million. He is restructuring his £3.7billion Equity Income fund, which has struggled with poor performance and investor outflows.
If Woodford agreed to sell the rest of his stake to Axel Springer it would trigger a mandatory takeover offer for the business.
The source said that Axel Springer is not in talks with Woodford but would be open to the opportunity. Shares in Purple bricks climbed by 3.8 per cent, or 4p, to 109.4p.
Woodford left his mark all over the stock market. Hargreaves Lansdown, the fund supermarket under fire for its cosy relationship with the beleaguered manager, was a major casualty, slumping 6.8 per cent, or 144.5p, to 1981.5p before it announced it would stop charging platform fees to its clients who have invested in the Woodford Equity Income fund.
Stock Watch – Aquis Exchange
Challenger stock exchange Aquis has hit a corporate record just under a year after it became a publicly listed company itself.
The firm, dubbed the ‘Spotify of stock exchanges’ as it allows traders to subscribe for a monthly fee rather than paying per trade, achieved its best monthly market share in May.
It saw £30billion worth of shares traded on its exchange during the month.
Its own stock, however, yesterday slipped 1.5 per cent, or 7.5p, to 495p.
The FTSE 100 still managed to climb a marginal 0.1 per cent or 5.93 points during the day, to 7220.22.
But insurance giant Aviva was another drag, as it announced its chief financial officer was leaving by mutual consent.
Tom Stoddard will be replaced on an interim basis by Jason Windsor, Aviva’s UK insurance head who has been at the business for nine years.
Stoddard will get so-called ‘good leaver’ status, which could result in him being paid a maximum of £2.9million.
Even though he leaves at the end of June, he will get £486,000 in salary and benefits, a £1.45million bonus and up to £947,000 in performance pay. Aviva slid 1.7 per cent, or 7.2p, to 410.6p.
Rumours that the chief content officer of Entertainment One was also on his way out caused shares in the Peppa Pig creator to fall.
Mark Gordon, appointed to the role just 18 months ago after Entertainment One bought his production studio The Mark Gordon Company, is reportedly unhappy. Shares tumbled 16.7 per cent, or 70p, to 350p.
From tomorrow, following the quarterly FTSE reshuffle which sorts the stock market indices so they contain the biggest companies by market value, the FTSE 100 will have two new entrants.
Industrial software company Aveva has jumped on to the top index, along with clothes chain JD Sports.
Easyjet, which has struggled with cost pressures and falling demand, has nosedived to the FTSE 250 along with drugs company Hikma Pharmaceuticals.
A ban on plastic recycling being shipped to South East Asian countries has hit waste management firm Biffa.
But bosses at the UK’s biggest collector of commercial waste claim it has weathered the storm and will spend £27.5million to increase plastic recycling at its plant in Seaham, County Durham. Shares dipped by 0.9 per cent, or 2p, to 226p.
And in a market movement to make posties happy, Royal Mail shares rose as chief executive Rico Back threw more money behind the firm, splashing out £297,516 on 150,000 shares, sending stock up by 4.7 per cent, or 9.3p, to 208p.
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