MFI boss gets his timing right

MFI chief executive John Hancock has a knack for buying low and selling high. Last week, Hancock, along with chairman Ian Peacock, finance director Martin Clifford-King and fellow director Mark Horgan, bought a total of 266,627 shares in the company for £330,617.

The buying comes after a steady drop in the furniture retailer's share price since it hit a peak in the spring. At that time Hancock was a seller. He and another director, Matthew Ingle, offloaded more than £1.5m worth of shares in April.

That peak was the culmination of a five-month shares surge and again directors had bought at the right time to take advantage.

In November and December, four directors, including Hancock, bought more than £130,000 worth of shares.