Travis Perkins divisional chairman sells shares as company reports falling sales

Joe Mescall, the Divisional Chairman of General Merchanting at Travis Perkins, sold 14,854 shares post-exercise, one day before the company warned that market headwinds have continued, although assured investors the outlook for the year as a whole remains unchanged.Mescall sold the shares at 1,098p each for a total of £163,097. The Northampton based builders merchant said on Wednesday that like-for-like sales fell 1.8% for the 11 months to the end of November 2012 while total sales for the period increased 1.6%. "This period included two more trading days in our merchanting and plumbing and heating divisions than for the comparable period in 2011," the group explained in a statement. It added that its specialist merchanting division has seen a small positive impact from the closure of a competitor. Like-for-like sales at merchanting rose 1.6%. Looking ahead Travis Perkins said: "These trends mean that our outlook for the year as a whole remains unchanged from that stated in our October interim management statement." Mescall's beneficial interest in the company is 45,597 shares. Top Director BuysVirgin Media Inc. (VMED) Director name: Mr Steven SimmonsAmount purchased: 40,000 @ 1,439.43p Value: £575,772London Mining (LOND) Director name: Dr Colin Joseph KnightAmount purchased: 35,000 @ 113.50p Value: £39,725F&C Asset Management (FCAM) Director name: Mr Edward BramsonAmount purchased: 25,000 @ 98.60p Value: £24,650Brammer (BRAM) Director name: Mr Steven Hodkinson Amount purchased: 7,947 @ 304.49p Value: £24,198Scotgold Resources (DI) (SGZ) Director name: Mr John BentleyAmount purchased: 500,000 @ 3.50p Value: £17,500Scientific Digital Imaging (SDI) Director name: Mr Kenneth FordAmount purchased: 100,000 @ 11.00p Value: £11,000Top Director SellsTravis Perkins (TPK) Director name: Mr Joseph Mescall Amount sold: 14,854 @ 1,098.00p Value: £163,097GKN (GKN) Director name: Mr Andrew Reynolds SmithAmount sold: 65,935 @ 225.35p Value: £148,585PayPoint (PAY) Director name: Mr Andrew M RobbAmount sold: 2,000 @ 885.00p Value: £17,700