Here are some ASX directors who sold shares recently and some of the intriguing reasons why

Here are some ASX directors who sold shares recently

Chris Hulls – Life360 (ASX:360)

The founder of this Silicon Valley-based location technology sold 863,903 of his shares, amounting to 1.2% of the company. We don’t know exactly how much his sale reaped because it was in multiple trades, but one trade involving 556,569 shares were sold for US$41.02 per share, equating to US$22.8m or A$35m. Hulls still owns 3.8% of the company, has claimed that 75% of his net worth is in his company shares and promised not to sell any more shares for the next 12 months. But he did not shy away from,’ my desire to diversify my financial holdings’. ‘These transactions will enable me to secure my family’s future as well as creating a foundation to undertake philantrophic projects in my local community’. He also promised that over a third of his shares would be donated immediately to a private foundation and donor advised fund.

Andrew Blattman – IPH (ASX:IPH)

IPH is a network of a few dozen IP services companies. It employs over 1,800 people across Australia, Canada and multiple countries in Asia. CEO Andrew Blattman sold 90,000 shares, reaping $456,867. The company told investors it was to satisfy personal tax obligations arising from the issue of shares under the company’s long term incentive plan. Blattman is still the company’s largest individual shareholder with over 2.1m shares.

Mark Fitzgibbon – NIB (ASX:NIB)

Fitzgibbon departed as a director of this health insurer on the weekend. This was a planned departure after a tenure of over 2 decades, but still had to disclose the trade because he was still on the board at the time. He sold $400,000 shares on market in 2 separate transactions in the middle of November.

Michael and Mathew Heine – Netwealth (ASX:NWL)

This father and son duo have built this wealth management and financial administration business into a $7bn+ giant since 1999. But the pair sold over $30m each last month, following earlier sales in October where Matthew sold $45m and Michael sold $30m. These transactions amount to $140m in two months. And yet, the pair retain a fair stake with 100m shares owned by Matthew’s investment vehicle. No explanation was given for the sales, although shares have more than doubled over the last 12 months. Not much of a surprise given its FUA has grown from $14bn to $95bn in the last 7 years.

Terry Smart –  JB Hi-Fi (ASX:JBH)

Terry Smart first served as CEO between 2010 and 2014 and was an executive for some years prior to that. He was succeeded by Richard Murray, only to return in 2018 as CEO of The Good Guys, and then of the Group in 2021. Its hard not to say his tenure as boss of the group hasn’t been a success given the share price and sales growth. The electronics the company sells are essential goods, and they don’t last as long as furniture. JB Hi-Fi also owns The Good Guys and this segment has been a laggard, although there have been some early signs things have been turning around. Smart sold just over $500,000 in shares on Remembrance Day. No specific explanation was given beyond the submission of the form and its note of an ‘on-market trade‘.

Owen Wilson – REA Group (ASX:REA)

REA Group, which is majority-owned by NewsCorp, owns classified sites including realstate.com.au. Owen Wilson, has been CEO since 2019 and he also served as a director of Hawthorn. He sold $3m in shares on Remembrance Day and a further $495,634 later that week. His sales come roughly a year after he and his wife Leisl sold a mansion in Toorak that had been listed with a $16-17m price guide, and he had bought for $7m in 2008. REA is up over 50% in 12 months, buoyed by surging revenues, although it has not been a perfect year with attempts to buy UK platform Rightmove coming to nothing.

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