Sausage pair pick up $10m

Author: KATRINA NICHOLAS Date:10/12/1999

Sausage Software chief executive Mr Wayne Bos and director and founder Mr Steve Outtrim eachcollected a $10 million windfall yesterday after selling a total of 5 million $4 shares to Asian institutionalinvestors.

The pair each diluted their stakes in the software company from 19.2 per cent to 17.3 per cent, givingthe new institutional investors a 3.8 per cent stake.

The dilution does not, however, leave Mr Bos or Mr Outtrim short. At market close yesterday each stillretained a stake worth $103.5 million.

Other Sausage shareholders of note include Telstra, with 10 per cent, and both St George Bank andIntel with 5 per cent stakes. The trade was conducted off market on Tuesday evening by stockbrokerBurdett Buckridge & Young.

Mr Bos, who joined the company in January this year, declined to reveal the names of theinstitutional investors the shares were sold to, but said only last week he had been in Singapore andHong Kong ``giving a lot of presentations" and fielding requests from institutions to gain access tostock.

``So we came home and had a think about it and thought having institutional investors on theregister was important," he said.

``Sausage is entering the next phase now and this is a good indication of how mature the businessis."

Since January 1 Sausage shares have soared from just 26c to a high on November 26 of $4.89.Yesterday it closed 8c up at $4.58.

``I think they're profit taking," said Mr Tony Cunningham, analyst with CPS Capital ``These guys havemade a killing and are now just taking some money off the table," he said. Standing to make anadditional $34.5 million killing if Telstra moves to increase its stake in the company to 40 per centare Mr Outtrim's relatives.

As part of the deal, the telecom giant has agreed to buy 30 million options exercisable at 20c eachfrom Hewitt Investments, an entity associated with Mr Outtrim's family.

Strategic equity stakes aside, Sausage Software has had an active year, buying Web design andmultimedia business Electric Alchemy and in May closing a deal with America Online.