Asian Citrus non-exec squeezes the funds to buy shares

28th Feb 2012 16:00

A non-Executive Director of Asian Citrus, an AIM-100 Chinese orange grower, has bought 256,000 shares for himself and his wife. Peregrine Moncreiffe and his wife, Miranda Moncreiffe, purchased the shares at an average price of 37.95p each for a total of £97,152. Winterthur Pension Management, in which Moncreiffe has an interest, also purchased 268,560 at 37.55p for a total of £100,844. Following the transactions, Moncreiffe, Mrs Moncreiffe and Winterthur now hold 1,078,000 shares, 128,000 shares and 268,560 shares, respectively. The purchase came just a week after the firm hit back at what it claims is an inaccurate article in a Hong Kong magazine renowned for its investigations into alleged fraudulent activities by listed Chinese companies. Hong Kong-based Next magazine has cast doubts on the accuracy of Asian Citrus's claims viz land ownership, fruit production and the value of its plantations, prompting a detailed rebuttal from the AIM-listed orchard owner.The farming group maintained that it "has very efficient and comprehensive internal control systems to measure and audit its plantations' production and corresponding revenue," and thus stands by the figures shown in its company reports.The share price fell 1.65% to 37.25p on the day of the purchase, having lost 50% over the last year. Top Director BuysAsian Citrus Holding (ACHL) Director name: Hon Peregrine D E M MoncreiffeAmount purchased: 268,560 @ 37.55p Value: £100,844Asian Citrus Holding (ACHL) Director name: Hon Peregrine D E M MoncreiffeAmount purchased: 256,000 @ 37.95p Value: £97,152Baronsmead VCT (BDV) Director name: Mr Godfrey F JillingsAmount purchased: 92,554 @ 77.90p Value: £72,100Grainger (GRI) Director name: Mr Mark Greenwood Amount purchased: 34,104 @ 110.42p Value: £37,658Wilmington Group (WIL) Director name: Mr Neil SmithAmount purchased: 33,300 @ 89.00p Value: £29,637Baronsmead VCT 3 (BMD) Director name: Mr Anthony TownsendAmount purchased: 19,198 @ 107.30p Value: £20,599Baronsmead VCT 2 (BVT) Director name: Ms Christina McCombAmount purchased: 20,315 @ 101.40p Value: £20,599Baronsmead VCT 4 (BNS) Director name: Mr Alan PedderAmount purchased: 20,517 @ 100.40p Value: £20,599eXpansys (XPS) Director name: Mr Chris OgleAmount purchased: 550,000 @ 1.92p Value: £10,560Baronsmead VCT (BDV) Director name: Mr Peter LawrenceAmount purchased: 13,222 @ 77.90p Value: £10,300Top Director SellsDiscovery Metals Ltd. (CDI) (DME) Director name: Mr Stuart Bradley (Brad) SampsonAmount sold: 500,000 @ 105.34p Value: £526,700Discovery Metals Ltd. (CDI) (DME) Director name: Mr Gordon GaltAmount sold: 275,000 @ 105.34p Value: £289,685Discovery Metals Ltd. (CDI) (DME) Director name: Mr John Thomas ShawAmount sold: 250,000 @ 105.34p Value: £263,350