Home Reit short seller Fraser Perring set to pocket £4m
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Short-seller who caused Home Reit’s stock crash went on to cash £4m from bet the stock would fall
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The short-seller who caused a stock crash at embattled real estate company Home Reit is about to make millions on his bet that the stock would fall.
Fraser Perring, whose Viceroy Research sparked a sell-off in November after publishing a scathing report questioning the group’s business model and its ability to collect rent, is estimated to have earned just over £4 million.
The 49-year-old took a 0.82 percent short position against Home Reit — equivalent to just under 6.5 million shares at an average price of 100 pence each — before Viceroy published his broad side.
Perring took a 0.82 percent short position against Home Reit, which provides properties to house the homeless
Trading in Home Reit’s shares was suspended Tuesday after the group failed to publish its accounts on time as its auditor rushed to audit the numbers following the allegations.
The stock was suspended at around 38 pence, meaning Perring took in about 62 pence in profit for each share in his position.
Between the release of the report and the suspension, Home Reit lost about 51 percent of its value because it failed to fully reassure investors, despite the allegations being labeled “baseless and misleading.”
The company, which provides real estate to house the homeless, suffered another blow last week when its investment advisor, Alvarium, spun off the division responsible for managing the trust’s portfolio in a bid to distance itself from the scandal.