Aquis weekly movers: Incanthera wins patent dispute due to no infringement

Andrew Hore
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Aquis weekly movers: Incanthera wins patent dispute due to no infringement

Equipmake Holdings (LON: EQIP) shares recovered 60% to 1.4p/share on the back of an increase in trading volumes. The share price is back to near the level it was in January.   

Better news for Incanthera (LON: INC) this week. The dermatology technology developer has an agreement with the entity that claimed patent infringement relating to the Skin + Cell range. The agreement confirms no patent infringement. This had been delaying the launch of products, which are in stock. The focus will be generating cash from this stock. The deal with Limeway Pharma Design has been terminated and the two firms will cross licence patents on a royalty free basis. The development of the treatment for skin solar keratosis and prevention of skin melanoma can be done independently. The share price recovered 26.5% to 10.75p.

Coinsilium (LON: COIN) has launched its subsidiary Forza! in Gibraltar. The share price increased 9.09% to 3p.

Cryptocurrency app developer Tap Global Group (LON: TAP) increased interim revenues by 39% to £1.8m and it moved into a positive EBIDA of £324,000, while practically breaking even after tax. There was £890,000 in the bank at the end of 2024 and another £1m has been raised since then. Third quarter revenues are expected to be £920,000. The share price improved 6.67% to 1.6p.

Kondor AI (LON: KNDR) has finalised the terms of its bid for Ora Technology (LON: ORA) and it is 0.9848 of a share for each Ora Technology share. The shares have returned from suspension with Kondor AI up 2.5% to 10.25p and Ora shares are 5.53% higher at 10.5p. The enlarged group will provide a marketplace to enable AI developers to market their products.

Prize draws operator Good Life Plus (LON: GDLF) generated revenues of more than £3.7m in the year to January 2025.  Monthly recurring revenues are £420,000. Subscriber numbers exceed 40,000. March 2025 is set to be a record month. Increased costs mean that there will be an operating loss of £4.3m. The Instant Wins product was launched in February 2025. The share price rose 2.7% to 1.9p.

FALLERS

Shares in Wishbone Gold (LON: WSBN) have returned from suspension 28.6% down at 0.125p after the proposed reverse takeover of Evrensel Global Natural Resources was terminated. Anthony Moore has left the board, and David Lenigas has joined as a consultant. A placing has raised £700,000 at 0.1p/share. The company requires £500,000 to pay for costs and other liabilities. One of the operating subsidiaries is being restructured and £190,000 of the cash is required to pay the reduced liabilities. The focus will be on gold prospects in Australia, particularly those near to the Telfer project owned by Greatland Gold (LON: GGP).

Marula Mining (LON: MARU) has approved a five-year budget for the 80%-owned Kilifi manganese processing plant. This should generate pre-tax operating project cash flow of $63.5m and $43.4m post-tax. The period starts in April. Environmental authorisation has been obtained for the Blesberg lithium and tantalum mine in South Africa. A deposit of £510,000 and a social labour plan and black economic empowerment transaction are required to receive the ten-year mining right. An environmental assessment is ongoing at the Kinusi copper mine in Tanzania. The share price declined 22.2% to 4.375p.

Janus Henderson has taken a 5.04% stake in Invinity Energy Systems (LON: IES). The share price dipped 10.8% to 8.25p.

IntelliAM AI (LON: INT) has appointed Jane Robinson as vice president for business development. It has also made other management appointments. The share price weakened 7.41% to 62.5p.

Arbuthnot Banking (LON: ARBB) increased loans by 2% to £2.4bn in 2024. Trading was tougher last year, and pre-tax profit fell from £47.1m to £35.1m. Total dividend were 69p/share, including a 20p/share special dividend. NAV is 1636p/share. The share price fell 3.54% to 885p.

Heart health products developer ProBiotix Health (LON: PBX) has signed a new partnership agreement with TopHealth in South Korea. TopHealth has the right to sell consumer products using ProBiotix Health, including the import of CholBiome X3. The share price slipped 2.78% to 8.75p.

Smiths News on course

Andrew Hore
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Smiths News on course

Swindon-based newspaper and magazines distributor Smiths News (LON: SNWS) is trading in line with expectations this year.

There are currently 91% of expected newspaper and magazine revenues are secured via long-term contracts that last until at least 2029. There is a steady decline in this area, but the contracts provide good visibility.

This business can generate cash while management builds up other operations. There are plans to offer ambient early morning deliveries, plus potential for other ways to utilise the company’s warehouse and distribution capacity and expertise.

The share price slipped 1.49% to 52.8p. Interim results will be published on 7 May.

Full year revenues are expected to decline from £1.1bn to £1.03bn, while pre-tax profit could be maintained at around £33.4m. Net debt could reduce from £11m to £8m and the dividend should be held at 5.2p/share. There should be net cash by 2026.

The shares are trading on just over five times prospective earnings, and the forecast yield is 9.9%.

FTSE 100 gains in fragile rally as UK retail sales and GDP beat expectations

UK Investor Magazine
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FTSE 100 gains in fragile rally as UK retail sales and GDP beat expectations

The FTSE 100 rose on Friday, helped higher by more good news from the UK’s retail sector and confirmation that the UK managed to carve out gains in the final quarter of 2024.

The UK’s retail industry is having a good week. Next’s results yesterday showed that retailers can grow sales and increase profits despite the gloom around the UK economy.

The feel-good factor for retail shares was compounded by UK retail sales growing 1% in the month to February compared to estimates of a 0.3% decline.

Kingfisher, Sainsbury’s and Marks & Spencer were among the FTSE 100’s top risers at the time of writing on hopes the sector may have an easier ride than previously thought.

“Retail sales volumes came in better than expected in February. The trends from last month effectively reversed with food sales falling after a very strong January and non-food categories rebounding following last month’s weakness,” said Charlie Huggins of Wealth Club.

“These figures, along with yesterday’s better-than-expected results from retail bellwether Next, indicate that consumers are still feeling confident enough to spend despite the gloomy economic headlines. 

The positivity created by stronger-than-expected retail sales and GDP helped the FTSE 100 carve out a fragile 0.1% gain. The index has dipped into negative territory a number of times on Friday, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see it turn negative again before the close.

“A jump in retail sales in February and confirmation the UK economy managed to grow in the final quarter of 2024 were treated as small wins by the market. While not earth-shattering data, investors are taking any nuggets of good news they can get in the current fragile environment,” said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell. 

“Both the FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 indices advanced on a day where other major indices in Europe went into reverse. Sainsbury’s, Kingfisher and Marks & Spencer all enjoyed a bounce on the retail sales figures, while utilities were also in demand.”

Interest in United Utilities, National Grid, and SSE reflects an element of caution with considerable uncertainty on the horizon in the form of Donald Trump’s ‘liberation day’ next week, when a raft of tariffs are set to come into force.

Gold hitting an all-time high again on Friday underscored the flight to safety.

Cyclical sectors such as miners and banks were the heaviest hit on Friday with losses in names such as Anglo American, Barclays, and BP offsetting gains for retailers and utilities.

AIM movers: GCM Resources and Woodbois raise cash much needed cash

Andrew Hore
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AIM movers: GCM Resources and Woodbois raise cash much needed cash

Yesterday, Forum Energy Services increased its shareholding in Angus Energy (LON: ANGS) from 10.5% to 16.2%. The share price improved a further 18.5% to 0.32p.

Oil and gas producer Parkmead Group (LON: PMG) reported a dip in interim revenues from £3.4m to £2.1m. There was a net cash outflow of £100,000. There is cash equivalent to 6.3p/share. The sale of UK North Sea licences to Serica Energy (LON: SQZ) should complete in the second quarter. That leaves gas production in the Netherlands and an operating wind farm in Scotland. Parkmead is reviewing acquisitions. The share price increased 9.43% to 14.5p.

Europa Metals (LON: EUZ) The disposal of the company’s main asset was completed on 13 November 2024, so it has one year from that date to acquire a new business. That led to a gain of £5.58m and a reported pre-tax profit of £4.83m. The share price rose 9.09% to 1.2p.

Shares in wines retailer Naked Wines (LON: WINE) continue to rise following yesterday’s announcement of its new strategy to build up its cash, partly by reducing inventories, and return to annual revenue growth of 5%-10%. Cost cutting and focusing on the core members will help to improve EBITDA to more than £10m. If the strategy is successful, cash could reach £100m by 2030. The share price is 5.93% higher at 86.65p.

FALLERS

URU Metals (LON: URU) shares have been hit by profit taking following the large jump in the price earlier in the week following the 25-for-one share split on 24 March. URU Metals is raising £300,000 at 3p/share, which is a large discount to the previous market price. This will finance the interpretation and ground work for the Zebediela project. The share price slumped 44.1% to 4.75p, having been as high as 10.5p earlier in the week.

GCM Resources (LON: GCM) has raised £1m at 3p/share, which will provide further working capital. Progress with the Phulbari coal and power project in Bangladesh remains slow and relies on the receipt of government approvals. At the end of 2024, there was cash of £900,000. The share price declined 20.8% to 2.85p.

Blue Star Capital (LON: BLU) lost £4.49m in the year to September 2024 following the write down of its investment 27.9% stake in SatoshiPay from £4.65m to £581,000. The future of Blue Star Capital is linked to the fortunes of SatoshiPay. The share price dipped 10% to 6.75p.

Woodbois Ltd (LON: WBI) has raised £2.65m at 0.05p/share. Every two shares come with a warrant with a subscription share price of 0.125p. There are also two options for a total subscription of £650,000. The timber supplier needs the cash because it had to pause production, and it would have been insolvent. Money will be spent on maintenance and paying overdue creditors. The accounts will be brought up to date so an audit can be completed. Financial systems will be improved and Jonna Cortez will become finance director and Mark Edworthy joint chief executive. A repayment schedule has been agreed with Nykredit Bank. The share price is one-eighth lower at 0.0525p.

Shares in cash shell Rosebank Industries (LON: ROSE) continue their decline following the return from suspension after it ended discussions with Cerberus Capital about the potential acquisition of critical electrical distribution systems supplier Electrical Components International Inc (ECI). Rosebank Industries decided not to go ahead with the deal because of stockmarket volatility. The share price slipped 7.83% to 530p.

Exploring Dividend Heroes with the AIC’s Nick Britton

UK Investor Magazine
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Exploring Dividend Heroes with the AIC’s Nick Britton

The UK Investor Magazine was delighted to welcome Nick Britton, Research Director at the AIC, to delve into the AIC’s Dividend Heroes; those investment trusts that have increased their dividends every year for 20 years or more.

Get the full list of Dividend Heroes here.

We explore the underlying asset classes the AIC’s dividend heroes invest in and why these asset classes are supportive of consistently growing dividends.

Nick explains the structural advantages of investment trusts, which allow them to pay and even increase dividends even during periods when the underlying portfolio companies may pause or cut their dividends.

We touch on a selection of Dividend Heroes and the characteristics they share, and how they differ in terms of dividend yields and dividend growth.

In addition to the Dividend Heroes, the AIC track’s ‘next generation’ Dividend Heroes that have grown their dividend for more than 10 years but less than 20 years. We compare the underlying asset classes of the next generation Dividend Heroes and reflect on the evolution of investment trusts over the years.

Find out more about Next Generation Dividend Heroes.

Eurasia Mining secures £3.15m of funding

Andrew Hore
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Eurasia Mining secures £3.15m of funding

AIM-quoted mining company Eurasia Mining (LON: EUA) is raising £3.15m at 4.37p/share. This placing with UK and US investors has been limited to reduce the level of dilution for existing shareholders. The share price slipped 4.21% to 4.55p.

Each share comes with a warrant to subscribe for a share at 8.74p. They last two years. The company had previously extended 41.55 million warrants exercisable at 26p each until the end of March 2025, but these were not likely to yield any cash.

This funding will enable Eurasia Mining to stop using the 2.5p/share convertible Sanderson Capital Partners facility that was announced last September. The conversion price was a premium when the deal was announced and there were warrants exercisable at 4p each.

The cash will be used to maintain the quotation in London and obtain a listing of the Astana International Exchange in Kazakhstan. It will also put the company in a stronger position in its attempt to sell its Russian mining assets.

Gold hits fresh record high as tariff concerns drive safehaven trade

UK Investor Magazine
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Gold hits fresh record high as tariff concerns drive safehaven trade

Gold hit another fresh all-time record high on Friday with the spot price touching $3,079 before profit takers stepped in to send the price marginally below record levels.

Over the past year, the rally in gold has been powered by increasing global political risk and inflation concerns. However, today’s record high is mostly the consequence of concerns about Donald Trump’s use of tariffs and investors seeking a safehaven amid heighten uncertainty.

“Gold has been on another glittering run upwards as investors seek out safe havens for their money. The spike in prices to fresh record levels comes as the world braces for another round of US tariffs, and geopolitical uncertainty swirls,” explained Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets, Hargreaves Lansdown.

“The price of gold has also been helped by buying from central banks, particularly by China. Part of the appeal of gold is as a hedge against inflation, which is staying stubborn in some economies amid concerns US trade policy could push up consumer prices further.

“There are also ongoing concerns that governments across the world have piled up high levels of debt, which is associated with a rise in long-term inflationary expectations.”

Geopolitical risk continues to pull investors into gold with the Middle East conflict reigniting and Putin appearing to be playing games with the West over a ceasefire.

“While further steps towards a ceasefire in Ukraine could see prices ease off, violence continues in the Middle East,” Streeter explained.

“There is also a risk that geo-political tensions escalate as opportunities in the Arctic are eyed by the US and Russia. If there are any indications that China may be poised to become more aggressive against Taiwan, there could be to be a further pull towards the precious metal.”

There is a growing consensus that gold is the place to be, and today’s price action justifies this view.

“I remain happy to ride the bullish momentum wave higher for the time being,” said Michael Brown Senior Research Strategist at Pepperstone.

Uru Metals raises £300k in heavily discounted placing

UK Investor Magazine
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Uru Metals raises £300k in heavily discounted placing

URU Metals shares tanked on Friday after the group raised £300,000 through a heavily discounted placing at 3p per share.

The discount represents an eye-watering 65% discount to yesterday’s closing price of 8.5p and is one of the largest discounts a company has had to offer shares to secure funds this year.

The placing was conducted by Axis Capital Markets Limited, which has also been appointed as the company’s joint broker with immediate effect.

The company said funds will accelerate development at URU’s Zebediela project. However, it’s difficult to see how far £300,000 will go before the company will require further funds.

“As things begin to pick up at the Zebediela project we are pleased to announce a partnership with Axis as these funds are pivotal in accelerating our ongoing work program. We look forward to updating the market on several fronts in the near term,” said CEO John Zorbas.

According to Uru, they will focus on geophysical interpretation to target higher-grade areas of the Zebediela project and they plan to reinterpret historic drilling results to establish groundwork for a maiden NI43-101 compliant resource. Achieving a maiden resource will require far more than £300,000.

The company has issued convertible loan notes and has recently extended the maturity date. Uru produced zero revenue in the most recent half-year period.

AIM movers: SRT Marine Systems returns to profit and ex-dividends

Andrew Hore
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AIM movers: SRT Marine Systems returns to profit and ex-dividends

Maritime technology provider SRT Marine Systems (LON: SRT) reported interims in line with expectations by swinging from a loss to a pre-tax profit of £3m as income from sizeable contracts starts to come through. Net debt has fallen to £4m since the end of 2024. Cavendish is not producing forecasts but says that this year revenues could reach £84m, compared with £14.8m last year. The share recovered a further 26.1% to 58p.

Wines retailer Naked Wines (LON: WINE) has outlined plans to build up its cash, partly by reducing inventories, and return to annual revenue growth of 5%-10%. Cost cutting and focusing on the core members will help to improve EBITDA to more than £10m. If the strategy is successful, cash could reach £100m by 2030, which is nearly double the market capitalisation, and some of this could be returned to shareholders. In the short-term revenues will decline as the company focuses on the profitable base rather than chasing revenues. The share price jumped 23.7% to 77.95p.

Mobile Streams (LON: MOS) says online casino and sportsbook Estadio Gana has launched in Mexico. Mobile Streams has a 29.9% stake in Estadio Gana with an option to increase it to 42.1%. Further products will be added to the service. The share price improved 23.1% to 0.64p.

United Oil and Gas (LON: UOG) has extended its Walton Morant licence in Jamaica by two years to 31 January 2028. This provides time to find a farm-out partner. Multiple parties have indicated interest in the project, which has multi-billion barrel potential. The share price rose 15.2% to 0.095p.

FALLERS

Financial website operator ADVFN (LON: AFN) plans to cancel its AIM quotation. The board believes that the current share price and poor liquidity mean that it is difficult to make acquisitions. There are plans to organise a matched bargain facility with JP Jenkins. Interim revenues fell from £2.29m to £2.02m, although lower admin expenses meant that the loss was lower. There is £3.5m of cash. The share price slumped 46.2% to 7p.

Education software and services provider Tribal Group (LON: TRB) had an improved second half, but there is continued uncertainty about the UK education sector and investment. There is also a switch in focus from perpetual licences to a subscription revenues model. In 2024, revenues improved 6% to £90m with cloud revenues increasing by one-quarter to £10.4m. Pre-tax profit dipped from £6.4m to £5.9m. Net debt was reduced to £5.2m. This year’s trading has started positively but it might be difficult to grow revenues in 2025.  The share price declined 5% to 38p.

Staffing company Empresaria (LON: EMR) is focusing on its core operations in the UK and US, particularly IT and healthcare, and intends to dispose of more non-core operations. Those businesses made just over 50% of operating profit before central overheads and could raise enough to wipe out net debt of £15.3m. In 2024, group revenues dipped 2% to £246.2m and net fee income was down 12% to £50.4m. There was a slump in permanent recruitment income. Underlying pre-tax profit fell from £3.5m to £2.2m. There are no signs of an upturn in the recruitment market. The share price fell 5.77% to 24.5p.

ITM Power (LON: ITM) has announced a plant engineering integration contact for EDF’s Tees Green hydrogen project. There had already been a reservation of four Neptune 2 electrolyser units and this contract will involve the integration of these units into the overall project. The share price dipped 4.98% to 27.08p.

Ex-dividends

Duke Capital (LON: DUKE) is paying a dividend of 0.7p/share and the share price dipped 0.5p to 28.75p.

Fonix (LON: FNX) is paying an interim dividend of 2.9p/share and the share price fell 3.5p to 188.5p.

MTI Wireless Edge (LON: MWE) is paying a final dividend of 3.3 cents/share and the share price slipped 2.5p to 53p.

Wynnstay Group (LON: WYN) is paying a final dividend of 11.9p/share and the share price fell 5p to 295p.

FTSE 100 falls as Trump announces 25% auto tariffs and ex-dividends weigh

UK Investor Magazine
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FTSE 100 falls as Trump announces 25% auto tariffs and ex-dividends weigh

Donald Trump strikes again. This time, with the announcement of fresh 25% tariffs on all automobiles and parts entering the United States. The news wasn’t taken well by markets, and European equities started the session in the red after a poor session for US stocks overnight. 

London’s leading index was down 0.6% at the time of writing, in line with poor performance across Europe.

Anything related to vehicle manufacturing was hit. FTSE 100 Melrose was down 2%, while German-listed BMW and Mercedes-Benz fell around 3%. US autos were also weaker, with Trump’s buddy Elon Musk’s Tesla falling 5% overnight, although it was higher in the pre-market.

Tesla shares are now down by around a third since Trump took office. 

“The automotive industry has struck Donald Trump off their Christmas card list after he imposed 25% tariffs on cars and car parts coming into the US from April,” said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.

“It has caused shares in auto companies to go into reverse and weighed on financial markets, with Wall Street firmly in the red last night and Europe following suit on Thursday. 

“Mexico, Japan, South Korea, Canada and Germany are the biggest suppliers of auto-related products to the US and stand to lose out if Trump doesn’t back down. It’s another blow to relations between the US and the rest of the world, and a further reason for investors to be gloomy.”

S&P 500 futures continued their decline during the European session.

A number of FTSE 100 stocks trading ex-dividend also weighed on the index. M&G shares fell 6% after the stock lost the rights to a monster 13.5p dividend. Taylor Wimpey, Schroders and Segro, among others, also traded ex-dividend

Next was the standout performer on Thursday after the retailer announced record profit before tax that surpassed £1bn for the first time in 2024.

The company outlined plans to return a substantial proportion of profits to shareholders through ordinary dividends and share buybacks, which resulted in Next shares jumping over 7%. 

Marks & Spencer shares rose in sympathy with Next’s results in the hope that strong sales at Next would have some read across for M&S.

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