LONDON (Alliance News) - Former Quindell PLC Chairman Robert Terry Tuesday emerged as a major shareholder at troubled AIM-listed stockbroker Daniel Stewart Securities PLC, taking a 7.4% stake in his first big deal since he left the business he founded.
According to Daniel Stewart, Rob Terry now has about 52 million shares in the company after buying 31.25 million shares at prices ranging from 0.15 pence to 0.554p on Tuesday, meaning he already owned 20.75 million shares. The shareholding is held both directly and through "company/family interests", according to a regulatory filing. Daniel Stewart has 705.9 million shares in issue.
The AIM-listed corporate advisory and institutional stockbroking company's shares were up 659% at 1.52 pence on Tuesday afternoon, having reached a high of 1.85 pence, its highest level since June 2011.
According to Daniel Stewart's website, Peter Shea, its chairman and chief executive, is the company's biggest shareholder, with a 21.65% stake, while Singaporean company Epsilon Investments PTE Ltd owns 9.99% of the company. Rockridge Investments SA is listed as holding a 7.08% stake, meaning Terry will becomes Daniel Stewart's third-largest shareholder.
Terry was forced to step down as Quindell's chairman in November last year following unusual share dealings with Equities First Holdings LLC. It is unclear whether Terry still retains shares in Quindell, as he sold the bulk of his stake in that company last year, falling below the 3% threshold at which a shareholding must be disclosed to the market. He is no longer listed as a major shareholder on Quindell's website.
News of Terry's stake in Daniel Stewart comes just one day after Quindell agreed a deal to sell its professional services arm to Australian law firm Slater & Gordon Ltd for GBP637 million and confirmed that a review by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP has initially found that some of its accounting practices were "at the aggressive end of acceptable practice".
Earlier on Tuesday afternoon, Daniel Stewart had issued a statement after its shares more than quadrupled on Monday's closing price. The company's shares were restored to trading in early March after it secured funding and published its restated results for 2014 after it ran into difficulties that year over a shortfall in regulatory capital.
Epsilon Investments, which is registered in Singapore and controlled by Zainab Binte Mohamed Omar, bought its stake as part of Daniel Stewart's GBP1.52 million fundraising in January.
"The company notes the recent movement in its share price and confirms, in this context, that there are no corporate transactions in contemplation," Daniel Stewart had said prior to publishing details of Terry's shareholding.
By Samuel Agini; samagini@alliancenews.com; @samuelagini
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