Chief executive Dr Alan Hearne has raised nearly £1m by selling shares in environmental consultancy RPS.

Dr Hearne has sold 470,000 shares at an average price of 209.588p each. That leaves him with 15,130 RPS shares and £985,000 in cash.

In March, Dr Hearne raised £222,434 from a share disposal at 178.1p a share.

Dr Hearne joined RPS in 1978 and became chief executive in 1981. He is 57 years old. In 2009, his pay fell from £739,000 to £414,000.

RPS has grown strongly throughout its period as a Main Market company. Revenues have soared from £32.3m in 1999 to £443.9m in 2009. Over the same period pre-amortisation profit jumped from £6.65m to £52.5m. There are not many quoted companies with a record as impressive as this.

However, RPS has admitted that trading in the first quarter is down on the same period last year and prices are under pressure. Bad weather did not help. First half profits will be lower in 2010. Even so, RPS believes the worst of the recession is behind it.

Net debt was £44.1m at the end of March 2010.


Top Director Buys

LMS Capital (LMS)
Director name: Mr David Verey
Amount purchased: 209,000 @ 50.00p
Value: £104,500

BATM Advanced (BVC)
Director name: Dr Zvi Marom
Amount purchased: 450,000 @ 22.92p
Value: £103,140

Bunzl (BNZL)
Director name: Mr Philip Rogerson
Amount purchased: 10,000 @ 747.96p
Value: £74,796

Alpha Pyrenees Trust Ltd. (ALPH)
Director name: Mr David Jeffreys
Amount purchased: 145,000 @ 31.40p
Value: £45,530

Edinburgh Worldwide Inv Trust (EWI)
Director name: Mr David E Reid
Amount purchased: 10,000 @ 260.00p
Value: £26,000

Aurelian Oil & Gas (AUL)
Director name: Mr John Conlin
Amount purchased: 50,000 @ 36.75p
Value: £18,375

Pinewood-Shepperton (PWS)
Director name: Mr Ivan Dunleavy
Amount purchased: 10,000 @ 139.25p
Value: £13,925

Robert Wiseman (RWD)
Director name: Mr Norman L Murray
Amount purchased: 2,100 @ 483.14p
Value: £10,146

Top Director Sells

RPS Group (RPS)
Director name: Mr Alan Hearne
Amount sold: 470,000 @ 209.59p
Value: £985,073

Character Group (CCT)
Director name: Mr Richard King
Amount sold: 275,000 @ 137.00p
Value: £376,750

Dairy Farm International (Singapore) (DFI)
Director name: Mr Howard Leonard Mowlem
Amount sold: 1,800 @ $6.72
Value: $12,096

Related share prices
Bunzl (BNZL) share price
BATM Advanced Communications Ltd. (BVC) share price
Character Group (CCT) share price
Edinburgh Worldwide Inv Trust (EWI) share price
RPS Group (RPS) share price
Robert Wiseman Dairies (RWD) share price
Pinewood Shepperton (PWS) share price
Alpha Pyrenees Trust Ltd. (ALPH) share price
Dairy Farm International Holdings Ltd. (Singapore) (DFI) share price
LMS Capital (LMS) share price
Aurelian Oil & Gas (AUL) share price