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The WH Smith (LSE:SMWH) share price crashed 42% on 21 August after the FTSE 250 retailer announced that it had uncovered a bit of a problem in its North America division.
Its accountants were recognising supplier rebates and discounts before they had been earned. The upshot is that the trading profit from the territory for the year ended 31 August will be £25m-£30m lower than previously thought.
But as the saying goes, one person’s trash is another’s treasure. Stock exchange rules require shareholders with a 5%+ interest in a company’s stock to disclose their transactions. And a review of these since 21 August shows some interesting movements.
Different reactions
Morgan Stanley’s reduced its position from 6.78% to 5.11%, Wellington Management International’s gone from holding 5.12% of the group’s shares to 2.84%, and BlackRock now owns less than 5%, having…
