Woodford offloads £100m stake in 'over-regulated' Severn

Invesco Perpetual head of investment Neil Woodford has offloaded a £100m stake in Severn Trent as the manager's struggles with water regulation continue.

Woodford, who runs upwards of £23bn at IP, was the second largest shareholder of Severn, but sold off the stake in the autumn. The Telegraph understands Woodford told Severn Trent the regulatory regime in the water sector was the main reason for the decision, meaning he could get a better return on his capital elsewhere. In July, Woodford labelled water regulator Ofwat as "dysfunctional" and should be merged with electricity compatriot Ofgem. "Ofwat is like a dark star, stuff goes in and never ever comes out. Ofwat keeps protesting they consult stakeholders, they don't," Woodford t...