Director Deeds: Sparks fly late July

Energy flows where energy goes. Or so the saying goes.

Again, like the last instalment of this column, most of the recent ASX director 'deeds' have happened around the materials and energy sectors, which can be partly explained by this.

Peter Cook, the managing director of Westgold Resources, bought 250,000 shares late last month, after buying 500,000 in January. This recent purchase cost him $350,000. It came on the back of a quarterly report that indicated Westgold is considering selling more assets to further build its cash reserves. The very next day, Cook purchased more shares on market for $148,000.

Meanwhile, it doesn't always settle well when a managing director offloads a tonne of shares after posting a quarterly that beats market expectations — but, of course, it depends on the circumstances.

Raleigh Finlayson sold $12.15 million worth of shares on July 23, days after Saracen Mineral Holdings announced its quarterly results, marked with another record year of gold production. Finlayson sold at $2.06 per share. Serving as managing director of Saracen since 2010, Finlayson has grown the company's market capitalisation from $9 million to $1.6 billion during that time. The sale represented more than half his shareholding, and half was said to foot a tax bill.

Murray Cod Australia non-executive director Martin Priestley spent $155,800 to hook two million shares. A fish breeder, as the name would suggest, Murray Cod is expanding its product line and working on new export markets. AustralianSuper recently became a substantial shareholder in the company. Earlier in the month, Murray Cod was issued with a speeding ticket for a rapid run-up, but Priestley bought in after the dust had settled. 

Melvyn Bridges, the chair of Oventus Medical, spent around $30,000 on more shares in the sleep apnoea device maker. Bridges has voiced clear intentions to keep building his stake in the company. Other Oventus directors and founders aren't snoozing in the driver's seat either, as they reiterate they have no near-term intentions to sell down their stakes despite shares recently coming out of escrow. 

A former Lord Mayor has increased his stake in a coal company. Labor politician Jim Soorley, who once presided over Brisbane, spent $42,000 on shares in TerraCom through his independent non-executive directorship. Soorley purchased 100,000 shares at 42 cents on July 20. Following that, TerraCom shares rose to a 52-week high before coming back again. TerraCom shares have been on a tear since May to rise more than 120 per cent year-to-date. The company has locked in thermal coal expansion plans in Queensland in recent months and is focusing on Central Asia and Mongolia too. 

Geoffrey Donohue is widely known in Australian resources circles, and his role as a non-executive director at Aspermont could help make news coming out of these circles better heard. Donohue spent almost $50,000 on shares in Aspermont, a company that owns media properties focused on the resources sector. He's also the non-executive chairman of Zamanco Minerals.

The energy is contagious. US-based director Philip Moeller filled up on on shares in Liquefied Natural Gas. Over the last half the company has announced a long-dated gas project stretching more than 20 years. Moeller isn't an outlier, with the majority of the share register hailing from North America, and five out of six members of the leadership team based in Houston, Texas. Moeller is also a former commissioner of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in the US. He first purchased 10,000 American Depository Receipts (ADRs), equivalent to about 40,000 shares, for around $US18,400 on July 18.

It's catching on. Leeanne Bond, an Australian-based director of Liquefied Natural Gas, went a little further to spend almost $39,000 on shares trading over 60 cents. Two other directors increased their stakes in Liquefied Natural Gas earlier in the month. Shares are now trading within an inch of a 52-week high. 

In retrospect, it doesn't seem like the best timing. Robert Black, the managing director and head of institutional sales at Euroz, bought $36,000 of shares at $1.35, just days before the share price dropped more than 10 cents. The company provides stock broking, corporate finance, funds management and wealth management services through various subsidiaries.

After posting a quarterly that exceeded top-end guidance, Resolute Mining managing director and CEO, John Welborn, upped the stakes and purchased $133,000 worth of stock on July 16. The gold producer is fast approaching a market capitalisation of $1 billion. 

Sigma Healthcare director Raymond Gunston splashed almost $73,000 on the market on July 27. After the Sigma register saw a string of transactions earlier in the month, just when it needed it the most, Gunston has added more money to the till. He purchased the shares at 47 cents, and like the other director transactions, the vote of confidence hasn't spread through the shareholder base just yet.