Director dealings: Couple of sweet deals with the real thing

The company, which manufactures products based on a plant called stevia, will work with Coca-Cola to look at developing a sweetener.

Under a separate agreement, PureCircle will also supply some ingredients to Coca-Cola.

Although PureCircle said it did not expect either agreement to have a significant impact on short-term revenues or earnings, it said they may have a positive impact in the longer term.

Shares in the company have risen to a two-year high following the announcement, but non-executive director Tan Boon Seng appears to think they still offer good value.

Last week a company in which he is a substantial shareholder bought just under a million shares at 239p to take his holding up to 22.7 million shares.

• Two directors have gone into the market following sausage skin manufacturer Devro’s interim management statement last week.

Chairman Steve Hannam purchased 12,594 shares jointly with his wife, at a price of 317.6p each, to take his holding up to 223,622 shares. Paul Neep, a non-executive director, bought 3,200 shares at 320p and now holds 220,893 shares.

Devro has warned full-year operating profits will be “slightly below” original predictions as a result of currency fluctuations and rising raw material costs.

• Rod Gentry, a director of Kingswalk Investments, has bought 714,285 shares at 0.58p each to take his holding above 31 million shares.

• Richard Murray, chairman of media services group Avesco, has bought 20,000 shares at around 159p each to increase his holding to 5.29 million shares.

• Paul Hampden Smith, finance director at builders’ merchant group Travis Perkins, has sold some of his stake in the company ahead of stepping down from the board next year. He disposed of 68,800 shares at around 1,109p.

• Real Estate Investors, the West Midlands-based property group, last week said deputy chairman John Jack sold 50,000 shares at 42p each to both Paul Bassi, chief executive, and Marcus Daly, finance director.