Forget Thames Water, the real boardroom drama this week was at the cosmetics small-cap Revolution Beauty Group plc.
Online retailer and 26.6% Revolution shareholder boohoo has tried to wrest control of the AIM-listed company through a hostile takeover and ousting of Revolution’s board.
This came to a head at Wednesday’s annual general meeting, when a shareholder showdown saw chief executive Bob Holt, chief financial officer Elizabeth Lake, and chair Derek Zissman voted out.
Non-executive director Jeremy Schwartz briefly became the sole board member. His first responsibility under the company’s articles of association was to hire three more members.
After brief contemplation, he selected Bob Holt as chief executive, Elizabeth Lake as chief financial officer, and Derek Zizzman as chair. Fancy that.
Revolution and boohoo have exchanged vitriolic words all week, accusing each other of being self-serving.
As we all know, investors hate instability, yet Revolution’s share price rocketed 53% higher on Wednesday, though that doesn’t tell the whole story. Shares were actually suspended since September 2022 for failing to publish company accounts amid Minto’s contentious departure.
Come Friday, as the tumultuous week comes to a close, Revolution shares remained 26% higher since Wednesday’s readmission.
AIM misses blue-chip trickle down
The same can’t be said for the broader Aim All-Share Index, which ended the week around 2% lower at 751.84, underperforming considerably against the FTSE 100 index’s 0.8% add.
The gap would likely have been wider if the blue-chip utility segment didn’t cop a beating, with Severn Trent, United Utilities and BT Group among the worst large-cap performers. It appears that Thames Water is causing contamination in more ways than one.
That stocks underperformed this week is hardly a surprise, what with last week’s bruising half-a-percentage point interest rate hike, though with income stocks out of favour on the premium segment, some passthrough to the lower end of the market could have been assumed.
Speaking of which, Caspian Sunrise PLC (AIM:CASP), the AIM-quoted Kazakhstan-focused oiler, took a 30% beating on Friday after scrapping its dividend payment for the foreseeable future.
The group has found itself the unintended victim of the Ukraine conflict insomuch as it has layered in additional costs and, crucially, copped an US$18mln loss of revenue. Shares fell from 4.3p to 2.82p.
African phosphate producer Kropz PLC (AIM:KRPZ)’s shares also plunged over 40% after revealing that its shares will be suspended from trading on AIM after failing to publish its annual reports.
The same fate beset Trackwise Designs PLC (AIM:TWD), with shares in the printed circuit technology manufacturer crashing 70% failing to provide financial statements for the last financial year. Trackwise said manufacturing delays and “intense demands upon the entire management team” have caused delays in the financial auditing process”. Shares have now been suspended.
Outside of the heavy industries, video game group tinyBuild Inc plummeted 70% after the firm said its first-half performance had undershot expectations. tinyBuild pinned the blame on the underperformance of two acquisitions- US publisher Versus Evil and Brazil-based developer Red Cerberus.
De La Rue recovers from profit warning
On the bullish side was banknote printer De La Rue pls, which shot up over 50% following indications of a recovery in currency demand and a robust performance in its authentication business, particularly in the latter half of the year.
This marks a turnaround from April, when the Basingstoke-based group dished out a profit warning.
Renalytix PLC (AIM:RENX) was a top mover In the pharmaceuticals segment, closing the week 44% higher on the back of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granting marketing authorisation for its KidneyIntelX.dkd prognostic test.
Prospex Energy PLC (AIM:PXEN) was a top riser in the energy sector, gaining 10% after bullish news emerged from its Italy-based gas field.
But the real energy stand out was Invinity Energy Systems PLC (AIM:IES, OTCQX:IESVF), which added nearly 40% in what can only be considered a vindication of its full-year trading statement published on Wednesday.