With MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company circling and shares near all-time highs, former Gram Car Carriers chief executive Karl Terjesen is taking the money and running.
Terjesen, who led the Oslo tonnage provider for 13 years, made NOK 24m ($2.2m) after selling all 93,551 shares in his ownership for NOK 257.50 each.
The stock was held through his company Strix Shipping.
“Following the transaction, Strix Shipping AS owns zero shares in Gram Car Carriers,” the company said in a stock exchange filing.
Gram Car Carriers shares have been on a steady climb upwards since listing on the Oslo Stock Exchange in 2022, as the car carrier market strengthened on the back of pent-up automobile demand and skyrocketing Chinese electric vehicle exports.
But shares were supercharged last Wednesday when Gram Car Carriers disclosed that MSC, the privately held liner giant owned by Gianluigi Aponte, was launching a NOK 7.6bn ($700m) takeover bid.
The offer has the support of both Gram Car Carriers’ management and major shareholders.
The shares jumped from NOK 212.50 to NOK 266.50 at one point on 24 April, hitting an all-time high of NOK 268.
Terjesen left Gram Car Carriers in 2018 at the age of 66.
On his departure, he told TradeWinds that he and owner Peter Gram were nearly 140 years old combined and that the company was in need of “a bit of renewal”.
Terjesen was replaced by current chief executive Georg Whist, although he stayed on as an adviser.
On Tuesday, Gram Car Carriers shares closed at NOK 257.50, down NOK 0.50 from Monday’s close.
