Barnes & Noble Chairman Leonard Riggio expanded his sales of stock with another 3.7 million shares, the company announced today. That takes his ownership share, which just a few months ago was at 30% of the company, down to 20%. 

Riggio first sold 2 million shares, taking a loss of $40 million, in December (see "Riggio Cuts B&N Stake")

The stock ended the day at $16.37, down 12% for the day, but still considerably higher than the $13.81 price at which Riggio sold his first block in December. 

The market has had to absorb a big chunk of Barnes & Noble equity over the past few months, between the two blocks of Riggio stock and Liberty Media unwinding most of its investment in preferred shares (see "Liberty Media Dumps Barnes & Noble").

Asked what kind of message the sale sends, Riggio told the Wall Street Journal, "I think it tells people I’m 73 years old."  He told the Journal he does not expect to sell more shares this year. 

The company improved its performance in the holiday quarter and appears to have begun a turnaround after its disastrous experimentation with the Nook (see "Barnes & Noble Turns a Profit").