JPMorgan takes stake in Plus500 above 7%

Earlier today, CFD broker Plus500 Ltd (LON:PLUS) published information about a transaction in its shares.

In a transaction dated October 23, 2015, JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) increased its holding in the broker to 7.04%. The investment bank (which is probably acting on behalf of its clients), purchased 427,587 ordinary shares in the broker, thus taking the holding to 8,083,662 shares.

After the latest transaction in Plus500 shares, JPM’s holding in the broker is distributed across its subsidiaries as follows:

  • JP Morgan Asset Management Holdings (UK) Limited holds 2.37%;
  • J.P. Morgan Securities plc holds 4.67%.

The latest transaction in Plus500 shares comes after in September this year, JPM cut its stake in the broker to 6.66% by selling 1,491,359 ordinary shares. We can only speculate about the grounds for the latest purchase of Plus500 stock. It could be that the robust results the broker reported for the third quarter of 2015 have spurred some investor appetite…

One share in Plus500 trades at 353.25p at the moment of publication of this article, significantly below the 400p per share bid that Playtech PLC (LON:PTEC) has made for the broker. The deal awaits the approval of at least one more regulator, with the regulatory delays and growing speculation that the deal may not be completed being the reason cited for the subdued share price of Plus500.

plus500_inside_oct26

Chart source: Google Finance.

To view the official regulatory filing about the latest transaction, click here.

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