Johannesburg - David Herro, one of the biggest investors in Glencore, reduced his stake in the commodity trader and miner, locking in profits after the stock doubled this year.
The chief investment officer of Harris Associates LP, said he had to “re-position” his bet on Glencore after the rally. “We don’t own 8.5% anymore, but we probably own around 6%," he told Bloomberg Radio in an interview on Monday.
Harris was briefly the second-largest investor in Baar, Switzerland-based Glencore, overtaking chief executive officer Ivan Glasenberg, who controls an 8.4% stake. The sovereign wealth fund of Qatar is the largest shareholder, with a 9% stake.
Glencore has rallied this year as Glasenberg rolled out a rescue plan to alleviate investor concern about its debt position. Herro added to his stake in Glencore when prices were near an all-time low for the company, which went public in 2011, and said in a February interview that his holding had recently risen to 8.5%.
The stock fell 2.2% to close at 184.35 pence in London, valuing the company at $34.9bn. The value of Glencore shares sold, about 2.5% of the company, would be worth $870m at that price.
A spokesperson for Glencore declined to comment.
Peter Grauer, the chair of Bloomberg LP, is a senior independent non-executive director at Glencore.
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