Trading Places: Here are the substantial holders that were buying and selling this week

Trading Places is Stockhead’s weekly recap of substantial holder movements focusing on fund managers.

Substantial shareholders are shareholders holding 5 per cent or more of a company’s shares and these can be directors, individual investors or institutional investors.

Shareholders are required to announce to the exchange when they cross above or below the 5 per cent threshold and any change in their holdings while they remain above 5 per cent.

Buyers

Alex Waislitz’ Thorney Group spent another $900,000 on NSX (ASX:NSX) stock. The exchange is attempting to become an alternative market to the ASX, but by managements’ own admission is held back by a lack of liquidity.

The other two purchases by Thorney this week included a 5.57 per cent stake in enviro-tech stock Calix (ASX:CXL) and a topping up of its stake in Southern Cross Electrical Engineering (ASX:SXE).

This week GBST (ASX:GBT) shareholders voted overwhelmingly in favour of an acquisition. Buying in only a few days before was London-based fund manager Samson Rock Capital, taking a 5.39 per cent stake.

The only timber stock on the ASX, Kangaroo Island Plantation Timber (ASX:KPT), saw Washington H Soul Pattison increase its holdings to 10.57 per cent.

Merchant Funds Management bought a 11.43 per cent stake in pot stock AusCann Group (ASX:AC8) while Regal Funds Management increased its stake in Medadvisor (ASX:MDR) to 7.38 per cent.

Australian Ethical Investment’s buys this week included Janison Education (ASX:JAN) taking a 7.99 per cent stake and consumer tech stock Shriro Holdings (ASX:SHM) now owning 11.63 per cent.

Challenger bought into SeaLink Travel Group (ASX:SLK) as part of a capital raising to help with an acquisition.

Sellers

San Francisco-based Osium Partners cut its stake in online market place Redbubble (ASX:RBL) to 7.9 per cent. After retreating during the last quarter of 2018, the stock has bounced back gaining 60 per cent this year.

Challenger cut its stake in EML Payments (ASX:EML) to 7.73 per cent while PM Capital reduced its stake in iCar Asia (ASX:ICQ) to 9.64 per cent.

Among fund managers that ceased to be substantials were Lowell Resources Fund, selling out of gold miner Santana Minerals (ASX:SMI). Naos Asset Management now holds only 4.28 per cent of Motorcycle Holdings (ASX:MTO) after sales over the last week.