BG Group CFO Ashley Almanza is set to collect a windfall after jettisoning nearly 400,000 company shares.

The executive director’s holding in the energy giant now stands at only 176,484 shares.

BG Group, operates in 20 countries on five continents and is a major player in the global energy market, reflecting its FTSE 100 status, but the sale has come as no surprise to city analysts.

Stephane Foucaud of Society Generale believed the move had partly been prompted by fluctuations in fuel reserves, but also smacked of profit-taking.

'I think it’s a mixture of both,’ said Foucaud. ‘Traditionally, the stock market expects a lot from BG Group because they have delivered in the past. BG exceeded expectations, so now the expectations may have become higher than what they can deliver. If they don’t deliver, the market will be very disappointed.’

Foucaud added ominously: ‘We have given BG Group a negative recommendation.’

Almanza’s decision to sell came hot on the heels of chief exec Frank Chapman offloading 439,172 shares of his own stock.

The FD, who was appointed to his present role in 2002, exercised options under the BG Group Company Share Option Scheme over a total of 269,526 ordinary shares of 10p each comprising 196,623 at a price of £2.50 per share, 50,557 at a price of £2.5634 per share and 22,346 at a price of £2.70 per share.

Subsequently 269,526 shares, arising from this exercise, were sold at a price of £6.53 per share. Additionally, he sold a further 124,000 shares at a price of £6.53 per share.