AO World chairman raises 10 mln stg with share sale
LONDON, March 16 (Reuters) - The chairman of AO World has sold a 1.3 percent stake in the British online domestic appliances retailer, less than a month after a profit warning sent shares in the firm plummeting, it said on Monday
The company said non-executive chairman Richard Rose sold 5.58 million shares at 1.80 pence a share on Friday, raising 10 million pounds ($14.8 million).
John Roberts, AO's chief executive, said Rose's share sale followed the expiry of a post-initial public offering lock-up period and will help to further increase liquidity and the number of shares in public hands.
He said Rose "remains committed to the company, both as a shareholder and as its chairman," retaining a "significant" holding in the firm.
AO floated on Feb. 26 2014 at 285 pence and peaked at 412.4 pence the same day. They slumped by nearly a half after last month's profit warning and closed Friday at 191.6 pence, valuing the business at 814 million pounds ($1.20 billion).
Roberts told Reuters last week that despite the profit warning the firm still sees strong support from investors for his long-term strategy. [ID:nL5N0WE2BY} ($1 = 0.6766 pounds) ($1 = 0.6768 pounds) (Reporting by James Davey; editing by Kate Holton)
