ValiRx shares were tanking on Friday after the life science announced they would discontinue research on a cancer treatment.

ValiRx was undertaking trials on a candidate for the treatment of endometrial, pancreatic and bile duct cancers in conjunction with Hokkaido University.

ValiRx said: “the profile of the product has been found to be unsuitable for further development at this stage and the evaluation will now cease.”

The trial was one of ValiRx’s main operational highlights in their recent half-year report and the outcome will be a blow to the company.

ValiRx shares were down 12% at the time of writing and now trade at the lowest levels since 2020.

Dr Suzy Dilly, CEO of ValiRx commented: 

“Although it’s disappointing not to be able to progress this project further, this highlights the importance of our process of evaluating academic projects prior to full in-licensing.  In addition to returning the data to Hokkaido, we have made recommendations for further work, and we will be following the scientific progress of project with interest.”

Tekcapital’s Guident has received a grant from Space Florida to develop remote monitoring and control for autonomous vehicles facilitated by low-orbit satellites.

Tekcapital’s shares jumped over 5% in early trade on Friday after the announcement.

The grant has been made as a part of the Florida-Israel Innovation Partnership program and will bring together Space Florida, Guident and their Israeli partner, NOVELSAT.

NOVELSAT and Guident are working to improve the connectivity and speed of Guident’s remote monitoring and control centres by utilising satellites.

The grant pays testament to Guident’s innovative approach and demonstrates the commercial opportunity in the future of autonomous vehicle safety.

“Through this extraordinary collaborative partnership, Space Florida is at the forefront of welding cutting-edge innovation with the boundless knowledge derived from scientific exploration. It thereby forges a path that shapes the very essence of the future of autonomous mobility,” stated Tony Gannon, Vice President of Research & Innovation for Space Florida.

Guident’s technology is focused on improving the safety of autonomous and has won major contracts, including one with the Jacksonville Transport Authority.

Space Florida’s grant will allow Guident to improve its offering and broaden the scope for commercial agreements.

“Guident is privileged to have the invaluable support and guidance of Space Florida with their unrivaled experience and strategic location for this new initiative,” stated Dr. Gabriel Castaneda, Guident’s Vice President for AI and Research.

“This funding will help propel us forward as we embark on the development and scale of an effective Remote Monitoring and Control Solution with enhanced vehicle safety, together with our Israeli Partner NOVELSAT.”

The FTSE 100 was flat on Thursday as investors digested central bank guidance on interest rates after the Fed paused rate hikes and ECB hiked by 0.25%.

Last night the Federal Reserve held rates at 5%-5.25% but provided a hawkish outlook on rates which suggests the Fed will hike again twice this year. US stocks sank overnight and were pointing to a lower open on Thursday.

“The Fed’s decision to pause rates at the 5.0% to 5.25% range yesterday were met with a luke-warm reception, largely due to the hawkish tone set for the rest of the year,” said Derren Nathan, head of equity research, Hargreaves Lansdown.

The ECB followed on Thursday with a rate hike and a similarly hawkish outlook as ECB President Lagarde said it is likely the ECB will hike rates again in July.

The German DAX was down 0.6% at the time of writing while the FTSE 100 shook off rates concerns to gain 0.1%.

The Bank of England will meet and decide on interest rates next week – economists expect the BoE will also hike rates by 0.25%.

FTSE 100 movers

After avoiding demotion from the FTSE 100 by the skin of its teeth, Ocado shares have steadily rallied, and the rally continued on Thursday with a 3% gain.

Halma was the FTSE 100’s biggest disappointment on Thursday after the life-saving technology group provided lower guidance than the market had expected.

“Halma delivered record full-year record and profit, though headline figures were somewhat flattered by weaker sterling which meant its overseas income was worth more,” said Matt Britzman, equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown.

“Looking under the hood, revenue was above expectations, but there was some weakness in margins due to supply chain disruptions, particularly in the safety sector. Guidance here was a little lower than markets were expecting, with return on sales expected around 20% for the coming year – analysts had pencilled in 20.4%, which is likely why shares are down in early trading.”

Legal & General shares were down over 2% after CEO Nigel Wilson announced he would step down.

“The new boss at Legal & General has a hard act to follow. Since Nigel Wilson was appointed to the top job in June 2012, Legal & General shares have outperformed its life insurance peers, Aviva and Prudential, to chalk up a total return of more than 200%,” said AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould.

AMTE Power, one of the only companies in the UK making lithium battery fuel cells, needs to raise more cash and will do so within the next four weeks.

AMTE Power shares were down 65% at the time of writing.

Today’s call for more cash follows other fundraisings earlier this year. AMTE Power agreed to a £580,000 loan from Highlands and Islands Enterprise in March.

AMTE Power has a £4 million convertible loan note facility with Arena Investors with £3,750,000 outstanding for conversion. Arena last converted £25,000 in April.

AMTE Power burnt through £3,363,332 in operating cash flow in the six months to 31st December 2022.

Investors looked past falling sales at ASOS on Thursday and chose to hone in on successful cost-cutting and the return to profit in the three months to 31st May.

ASOS shares were over 13% higher at the time of writing on Thursday after reporting adjusted earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) increased more than £20m year-on-year.

The online retailer achieved higher profitability by cutting costs across the business, which involved clearing out existing stock and buying less.

Cost cuts were essential for profitability, and the degree of the cuts is highlighted by reported revenue for the period falling 11%. A return to physical shops after the pandemic and a general slowdown in consumer spending has knocked sales.

Investors will also be encouraged by the group’s comprehensive action plan to drive higher profits in the future, which involves strengthening their personnel, improving the customer journey, and ‘right-sizing’ stock.

ASOS have set out four pillars in their ‘Driving Change’ agenda:

• 1. Renewed commercial model;
• 2. Stronger order economics and lighter cost profile;
• 3. Robust and flexible balance sheet;
• 4. Reinforced leadership & culture

ASOS is now targeting £40-60m EBIT in H2 2023.

José Antonio Ramos Calamonte, Chief Executive Officer, commented on recent performance:

“I am confident in the direction we are going, we have restored profitability in the period and made good progress in clearing through our inventory to generate cash. We retain ample balance sheet flexibility and reiterate our expectations for improved profitability, cash generation and reduction in net debt in H2 FY23 and beyond.”

ASOS shares were 13% higher at 370p at the time of writing.

The Federal Reserve has decided against raising interest rates again breaking a 15-month run in rate hikes.

However, the trajectory of future interest rate changes indicated by individual members’ predictions suggests the Federal Reserve will hike rates twice again this year.

The median forecast of US rates is a rise to 5.6% before the end of 2023, up from 5.1% the last time the Fed met.

The hawkish shift in the rates forecast saw US stocks dump with the S&P 500 trading down 0.59% to 4,343 at the time of writing.

“Investors had expected policymakers to keep rates on hold, but the more hawkish tone came as some surprise, with two extra hikes pencilled in by half of the officials sitting on the committee,” said Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets, Hargreaves Lansdown

“There are three outlier views suggesting an even tougher stance might be needed to take down inflation closer to target.”