After teen retailer American Apparel Inc. struck a refinancing deal to potentially sell shares for $2 each, company founder Dov Charney bought shares at prices above $3.

Charney, the chairman and chief executive of the Los Angeles clothing maker, reported the purchase of $2.67 million in company stock on Thursday and Friday. Minutes after Mr. Charney made a late Monday filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission about the purchase, the company’s stock price surged more than 10 percent.

Before last week’s purchases, Charney hadn’t bought or sold a single share since the company began trading publicly in 2006. His ownership stake now stands at 53.7 percent.

American Apparel’s stock price began to rally two weeks ago when the company, in danger of default, secured $80 million in capital from private-equity firm Lion Capital LLP.

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