LONDON (Alliance News) - The People's Operator PLC Wednesday said Chairman Jimmy Wales bought 100,000 shares at a price of 20 pence per share on Tuesday after the company reported a widened pretax loss.
Following this transaction, Wales holds 6.1 million shares, which represents 7.89% stake in the group.
Wales is the co-founder of online encyclopedia Wikipedia.
The People's Operator last week reported a widened pretax loss for 2015 as increased investment offset a jump in revenue driven by an increased in subscribers.
The company said its pretax loss widened to GBP10.4 million in 2015 from GBP2.3 million in 2014, as a rise in revenue to GBP2.1 million from GBP432,391 was offset by a significant ramp up in administrative costs.
Additionally, People's Operator recorded GBP650,800 in exceptional administrative expenses related to the company's launch in the US during the year.
"This was a solid year of growth for The People's Operator. Our subscriber numbers continue to rise, and we are seeing excellent traction following our launch in the US. Our large numbers of charity and good cause partnerships, coupled with our popular and active social platform, mean that we are gaining more and more subscribers attracted by our giving proposition. This proves the strength and viability of our model for viral growth allied with low marketing spend and firm cost control," Wales said last week.
Shares in mobile virtual network operator were down 27% at 23.90p Wednesday and have lost 72% of their value so far in 2016.
By Arvind Bhunjun; arvindbhunjun@alliancenews.com; @ArvindBhunjun
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