It comes after it was disclosed on Wednesday (31 July) that Kockar, chairman of Turkish holiday giant Anex Tourism, had snapped up a 6.71% stake in Cook.
Cook’s share prices shot up 25% (1.10p) by close of trading on Wednesday, and were up a further 28% to just over 7p shortly before 9am on Thursday morning.
Kockar is the founder and owner of Anex Tour, which he set up in 1996. The company operates primarily in Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Germany, while subsidiary Onex Travel operates in the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Poland.
It also operates 26 Boeing aircraft under its Azur Air brand. In total, Anex handles around three million holidaymakers a year.
Kockar’s investment comes after Cook last month announced a major restructure, underpinned by £750 million fresh investment from its largest shareholder, Chinese travel firm Fosun, and its lenders.
Club Med owner Fosun currently holds an 18% stake in Cook but is set to become the majority shareholder in Cook’s tour operator business, and minority shareholder in its airline, subject to competition and regulator approvals later this year.
