Navitas, Sandfire directors sell $52m shares

Navitas CEO Rod Jones and Sandfire Resources director John Evans have sold large parcels of shares this week, with Mr Jones reaping $48.5 million from the sale of part of his Navitas stake. 

Mr Evans' share sale pales by comparison but is still large in absolute terms, with the sale of most of his Sandfire shares for $3.8 million.

Mr Jones sold 8.5 million of his shares on Friday and Tuesday at an average price of $5.66 per share, raising $48.5 million.

Mr Jones remains Navitas' largest shareholder after the sale with more than 45 million shares, leaving him with 12 per cent of the company’s issued capital.

With the Australian global education company's share price currently at $5.79, Mr Jones' remaining stock in Navitas is valued at $260 million.

His sale price is close to the recent peak in Navitas' share price, and follows a strong recovery from a low point of less than $3 in late 2011.

The sale comes soon after the appointment of investment banker John Biesse as the inaugural chief investment officer for Jones Family Office, to run Mr Jones' investment portfolio.

Mr Biesse told Business News last month that his appointment came about due to pressures on Mr Jones' time.

“He wants to focus his energy on gaining maximum value from the significant opportunities available to Navitas and therefore won’t be able to give it (his private portfolio) the time it deserves,” Mr Biesse said.

In an announcement to the ASX, Navitas said Mr Jones had no intention of selling any more of the company’s shares in the short to medium term and that he remained committed to his role as CEO.

Navitas also said the 8.5 million shares sold had been placed with institutional investors.

Mr Jones was a co-founder of Navitas and has been CEO since 2004 when the company became listed on the ASX.

Since then the company has expanded out of Australia into 27 countries and enrols 55,000 students in its colleges per annum.

Meanwhile, Sandfire's Mr Evans has sold 600,000 shares, out of a total holding of 725,215, at an average price of $6.39 per share.

Mr Evans also holds 1.52 million options over Sandfore stock, most of which are due to expire in July this year.

He has 1.19 million of the 12 July 2013 options, which have exercise prices ranging from 60 cents to $1, meaning they are well and truly 'in the money'.

The stock closed today at $6.44 per share, having peaked at about $8.60 last year.