Barclays Share News (BARC)

Sir David Walker, the newly-installed Chairman of Barclays, has swelled his stake in the company with the addition of 50,000 shares just one day after the company delivered a rise in adjusted third-quarter pre-tax profit. Walker added 50,000 shares at 230.19p each, taking his share in the company to 77,000. On Wednesday, the company swung to a statuary loss before tax in the third quarter, but the adjusted bottom line - a better measure of its underlying performance - saw strong growth when excluding the £1.8bn in own credit charges and compensation for mis-sold Payment Protection Insurance (PPI). On an adjusted basis, pre-tax profit totalled £1.73bn in the three months to September 30th, pretty much flat quarter-on-quarter, but well ahead of the £1.34bn reported in the third quarter last year. This was broadly in line with analysts' forecasts for £1.71bn. The news proved a disappointment to shareholders, with shares dropping in early trading. However, they are now up more than 6p over the past week, and 62p, or 35%, over the past 12 months. Top Director BuysPureCircle Ltd. (DI) (PURE) Director name: Mr Tan Boon SengAmount purchased: 25,000 @ 239.50p Value: £59,875Publishing Technology (PTO) Director name: Mr Alan MougAmount purchased: 50,176 @ 99.00p Value: £49,674F&C Asset Management (FCAM) Director name: Mr Edward BramsonAmount purchased: 50,000 @ 97.98p Value: £48,990PureCircle Ltd. (DI) (PURE) Director name: Mr Paul E Selway-SwiftAmount purchased: 12,000 @ 240.00p Value: £28,800Wolfson Microelectronics (WLF) Director name: Mr Robert EckelmannAmount purchased: 10,000 @ 211.00p Value: £21,100Thorntons (THT) Director name: Mr Jonathan HartAmount purchased: 54,569 @ 30.50p Value: £16,644Stramin Global Resources (STGR) Director name: Mr Manoli George Richard YannaghasAmount purchased: 310,000 @ 5.00p Value: £15,500Lok'n Store Group (LOK) Director name: Mr Richard HolmesAmount purchased: 12,000 @ 119.50p Value: £14,340Spectra Systems Corporation (SPSY) Director name: Dr Nabil LawandyAmount purchased: 25,000 @ 40.00p Value: £10,000Top Director SellsK3 Business Technology Group (KBT) Director name: Mr Andy MakehamAmount sold: 42,000 @ 152.00p Value: £63,840K3 Business Technology Group (KBT) Director name: Mr David J BoltonAmount sold: 23,000 @ 152.00p Value: £34,960Aggreko (AGK) Director name: Mr Bill CaplanAmount sold: 1,000 @ 2,125.00p Value: £21,250