Mystery share price move solved as Australian transport giant nabs 6.6% of smaller rival
Linfox has gained a piece of K&S Corporation in a move that appears to solve the mystery of the smaller firm’s share price jump.
K&S’s ‘Notice of Initial Substantial Holder’ report to the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) reveals two Linfox entities spent $6,778,244.13 buying 7,970,043 K&S shares between them over two days.
It is one of the more interesting developments since Linfox Australia and New Zealand CEO Annette Carey took the post in March.
For Linfox, the purchase was a bargain it had to take advantage of.
“The business has held shares in K&S Corporation for several years,” a Linfox spokesperson explains.
“We saw value in the stock at their current levels and have taken the opportunity to expand our holding.”
K&S shares rose from $1.025 to a high of $1.20 on Friday, the day the ‘notice’ says the shares were bought, before hitting $1.40 and then subsiding somewhat.
K&S was unable to explain the sharp rise in response to a stock exchange query.
Its shares had entered a steep decline following the November 23 annual address to shareholders by chairman Tony Johnson and CEO Paul Sarant that indicated still more difficult times ahead for the company.
The purchase appears to have effectively returned the share price to its pre-address level.