Jet2 founder Philip Meeson sells millions more shares

The founder of budget airline and holidays operator Jet2 has further lowered his stake in the listed business after selling a further five million shares.

Philip Meeson has sold the ordinary shares to a limited number of institutional investors.

The deal involves approximately 2.3 per cent of the issued ordinary share capital in Jet2.

In a statement issued to the London Stock Exchange, Jet2 said: “Philip’s rationale for the transaction has been driven by personal financial considerations alone.

“Philip believes that Jet2, as a market leader in the holiday business and with its firm order for 146 Airbus A321 aircraft is ideally positioned to fully take advantage of a market with huge potential.

“He believes there is a great future for Jet2 and he expects to continue as a very substantial shareholder in Jet2 going forward.”

Philip Meeson continues Jet2 shares sell off

The move comes after Meeson stepped down as chairman of Jet2 in September last year and was succeed by Robin Terrell.

In April this year, Meeson also decreased his stake in the Leeds Bradford Airport-based group from 18.32 per cent to 17.73 per cent.

Other major investors in the company include Silver Point Capital, Gobi Investment Partners, Artisan partners and Jupiter Asset Management.

The latest share sale from Meeson comes after Jet2 welcomed a late bout of” booking momentum” in July and August, and doubled down on its strategy to ramp up its package holiday offering.

The Aim-listed carrier, which in July hiked its dividend after reporting record passenger numbers, said it had maintained its momentum throughout late summer in a trading update ahead of its Annual General Meeting (AGM).

On sale seat capacity hit 17.7m seat in Summer 2024, 12.4 per cent higher than last year’s busy season and a marginal improvement on the numbers reported in July’s preliminary results.