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SuperDry shares slide as founder Julian Dunkerton resigns and donates shares to charity

Published: 11:14 27 Mar 2018 BST

Superdry store
Dunkerton intends to donate around £1.16mln worth of SuperDry shares to the Blue Marine Foundation, a sea protection charity

SuperDry PLC (LON:SDRY) saw its shares drop in mid-morning trading Tuesday as it announced that one of its founders, Julian Dunkerton is to leave the business and donate over £1mln worth of his company shares to charity.

The FTSE 250-fashion retailer said Dunkerton would step down as a director from 31 March 2018, adding he was resigning to devote more time to his other businesses and charitable interests.

READ: Superdry's early focus on digital a key driver of growth in Cazenove's view

In a separate statement, the group also said it had been notified that Dunkerton intends to donate around £1.16mln worth of SuperDry shares as a personal donation to the Blue Marine Foundation, a sea protection charity.

The firm said the donation is part of a wider legacy strategy that Dunkerton has been working on outside his interests in SuperDry

Peter Bamford, SuperDry's chairman said: "With Superdry embarking on the next phase of its ambitious growth plans, and with other interests and opportunities available to him, Julian and I have been talking for some time about the right time for him to move on from the business."

In a note to clients, analysts at Liberum cut the target price for the firm to 1,850p from 2,100p, citing an increased risk profile due to the founders being "the strategic focus for the group and values behind the brand".

The broker added: "We think management should alleviate concerns that the exit of the founders will not in any way diminish the design process, and that the brand remains in a robust position expressing they have the necessary skills across all areas of the Group. In a market place that is clearly changing rapidly we see today’s announcement as an increase in SuperDry risk profile"

In late morning trading, SuperDry shares were 6.3% lower at 1,548p.

--Adds broker comment--

 

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