LONDON (ShareCast) - Baroness Noakes, a non-executive director at Severn Trent opened her account at the water company yesterday as it reported a big rise in profits.

The Conservative peer, who is Shadow Minister for the Treasury, bought 4,000 shares at 1,474.6p each, paying a total of £58,984. She had no shares in the firm before Thursday.

The purchase came on the same day Severn said pre-tax profits for the year to March rose by 16% from the previous year to £292.2m.

Baroness Noakes, who joined Severn’s board on 29 February, is also the senior independent director of the carpet and floorings retailer Carpetright.

Elsewhere in directors' deals, bosses at the beleaguered bank Bradford and Bingley sought to restore confidence in the troubled mortgage lender by buying a combined total of more than 0.5m shares, it emerged late on Thursday.

Executive chairman Rod Kent bought the largest stake, taking 325,000 shares at 74.74p each, paying a total of £259,000. Finance director Chris Willford bought 65,000 shares at 70p a time and five other board members took smaller stakes.

Shares in Bradford and Bingley have fallen sharply in recent months. In February, Willford bought 248,508 shares at just over 181p a time.

Shareholders have criticised the bank over its decision to cut the price of its recently-announced £300m rights issue, despite it being underwritten, and to sell a 23% stake to US private equity group TPG without offering it to existing owners first.

Kent took over at Bradford & Bingley following the resignation of chief executive Steve Crawshaw last week due to ill-health.


Top Director Buys

Omega Insurance Holdings (OIH)
Director name: Mr John Robinson
Amount purchased: 50,000 @ 150.00p
Value: £75,000

Severn Trent (SVT)
Director name: Mr Baroness Sheila Noakes
Amount purchased: 4,000 @ 1,474.60p
Value: £58,984

Hogg Robinson (HRG)
Director name: Mr Julian Steadman
Amount purchased: 87,000 @ 44.50p
Value: £38,715

Serco Group (SRP)
Director name: Mr Thomas A Corcoran
Amount purchased: 4,000 @ 453.45p
Value: £18,138

ANT (ANTP)
Director name: Mr Bruce Anderson
Amount purchased: 100,000 @ 28.00p
Value: £28,000

Speedy Hire (SDY)
Director name: Mr Justin Read
Amount purchased: 3,000 @ 650.00p
Value: £19,500

Hogg Robinson (HRG)
Director name: Mr John D Coombe
Amount purchased: 43,000 @ 44.50p
Value: £19,135

Hogg Robinson (HRG)
Director name: Mr David Radcliffe
Amount purchased: 35,000 @ 44.50p
Value: £15,575

Camco International (CAO)
Director name: Mr David R W Potter
Amount purchased: 33,528 @ 44.00p
Value: £14,752


Top Director Sells

Capita Group (CPI)
Director name: Mr Paul Pindar
Amount sold: 300,000 @ 680.00p
Value: £2,040,000

Brambles Ld (BXB)
Director name: Mr Craig van der Laan de Vries
Amount sold: 237,305 @ 397.00p
Value: £942,101

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