Investment bank Jefferies’ chief executive officer Rich Handler has sold off shares for the first time — to purchase a yacht, among other things, the firm said in a statement on Thursday. “My sale of shares today was a gift to myself and my family, and I do not intend to sell any further shares,” Handler said.
Handler offloaded about 1.5 million shares, according to the firm. Handler has received about 70% of his compensation in the form of Jefferies stocks since he joined the company in 1990. Following the sale, Handler now owns about 19.25 million of Jefferies shares, the firm said.
“I remain extremely bullish on Jefferies and fully committed to helping us continue to build the best independent, global and full service investment banking firm,” Handler said.
Shares of Jefferies were down by more than 2% in early hours, trading at $43.54.