SMS directors worth £110 million

TWO directors at Glasgow-based gas meter supplier Smart Metering Systems (SMS) are sitting on a joint ­paper fortune of around £110 million after floating their company on the stock market two years ago.

Shares in the Aim-quoted firm have jumped from 60p when it floated in July 2011 to 340p on Friday night, pushing its market value up from £50m to about £285m. SMS posts half-year results on Wednesday.

The rise in the value of the company’s stock means that founder and deputy chairman Steve Timoney’s 27.77 per cent stake is now worth about £80m, while chief executive Alan Foy’s 10.67 per cent holding is valued at £30m.

The pair’s paper profit comes on top of the £17m they pocketed between them when they sold shares during the flotation. In November, Foy also sold more than 4.4 million shares in the firm to institutional investors at 215p each, giving him just under £9.6m, while Timoney received £4m for selling just over 1.8 million shares at the same price.

SMS’s share price has risen as the company has signed more deals to supply meters to industrial gas users.

Last month the company signed a partnership deal with Dong Energy, which built on previous contracts between the two firms. Eon also signed a deal with SMS in November.