JD Sports chief’s £21m share sale

JD sports boss Peter cowgill has sold £21m worth of shares in the shoe seller.

It is the third big sell-off by the executive chairman in a year and a half, with the 68-year-old scooping a total of £53m in the deals.

In June 2020 cowgill sold shares worth £13m and in october that year he sold a £19m chunk.

cowgill, who has been at the helm of the so-called King of Trainers since 2004, yesterday sold another 10m shares, or around half his stake in the business. He said the shares were sold for ‘personal reasons’.

The announcement sent shares tumbling by 6.5pc, or 13.55p, to 197.95p. Berenberg analysts stressed that cowgill remains ‘fully committed’ to JD given he still owns around £20m worth of shares in the business.

And the investment bank said concerns about the sale were ‘overdone’, noting cowgill’s future pay will include incentives given in shares. cowgill was criticised last year over his £4.3m pay packet, handed out despite the company receiving £100m of Government support during the pandemic.