Executives and directors of movie-theater chain AMC have stepped up stock sales this month.
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AMC Entertainment Holdings stock has more than doubled in the 10 trading days so far in June. Executives and directors of the movie-theater chain have stepped up stock sales to $13 million for the month to date. Some haven’t sold AMC stock in years.
Shares of AMC (ticker: AMC) have rocketed more than 26 times in price for the year to date with the latest surge. The so-called meme stock has found a groundswell of support from traders on social media, upending funds pursuing conventional investing tactics.
Company insiders have already been selling shares earlier this year. What’s different now is that both the number of sellers and the volume have picked up, and the stock set an intraday record price of $72.62 on June 2. It closed Monday at $57.00.
Ten insiders have sold 238,534 shares for a total of $12.9 million so far in June, according to records filed through Friday with the Securities and Exchange Commission. That’s an average per-share price of $54.12, more than twice the $26.12 price that the stock closed at on May 28, the last trading day of that month.
AMC didn’t respond to a request to make any of the insiders available for comment on their transactions.
John D. McDonald, executive vice president of U.S. operations, sold 30,000 shares on June 3 for $1.7 million. He now owns 93,739 shares, according to forms he filed with the SEC. McDonald sold 50,000 shares in April for $496,000, an average per-share price of $9.92. Before this year, his last AMC stock sale was in March 2019.
AMC director Howard W. “Hawk” Koch, Jr. is another big June seller. The executive producer of “Wayne’s World” and its sequel, among many other films, has now sold a total of 29,656 shares on June 7 and 8 for a total of $1.6 million. He now owns 17,722 shares. Previous to this month, Koch last sold AMC stock more than five years ago. He sold 2,000 shares in March 2016 for $58,151.
Anthony J. Saich, also an AMC director, sold 25,709 shares on June 3 and 8 for a total of $1.4 million. Saich, who heads the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation at Harvard University, now owns 17,722 shares. Prior to this month, his last AMC stock sale was in March 2016.Other big sellers in June include Carla C. Chavarria, chief human resources officer, who sold 40,346 shares on June 3 for $2.5 million, and AMC director Gary Locke, a former ambassador to China and Washington state governor, who sold 34,293 shares on June 3 for $1.7 million. Chavarria now owns 44,183 shares, and Locke now owns 19,565 shares. Prior to this month, Chavarria last sold AMC stock in June 2018. Locke has no prior stock sales.
Inside Scoop is a regular Barron’s feature covering stock transactions by corporate executives and board members—so-called insiders—as well as large shareholders, politicians, and other prominent figures. Due to their insider status, these investors are required to disclose stock trades with the Securities and Exchange Commission or other regulatory groups.
Write to Ed Lin at [email protected]
