Shares in Akers Biosciences Inc (NASDAQ:AKER LON:AKR) shot up 24% to 146p on a first order for its rapid, over-the-counter cholesterol self-test.
First Check Diagnostics, the exclusive distributor in the US, will sell it under its "First Check" brand through a raft of top retailers.
The test differentiates between 'good' and 'bad cholesterol', a distinction that is essential to make a truly effective screen test for dangerous levels of cholesterol Akers said.
Obtala Ltd (LON:OBT) was also in demand on a premium priced share issue to high net worth investor in Hong Kong.
The African forestry and agriculture group raised £4mln through a share issue to Wealth Rank Limited, which will subscribe for 20mln new shares at 20p, a 13% premium to the closing price yesterday. Warrants at the same price exercisable over the next 18 months may raise an additional £4mln.
Shares rose 5% to 18.51p.
2.30pm...Challenger Acquisitions buoyed by new board member
Challenger Acquisitions Limited (LON:CHAL) rocketed higher on the appointment of veteran financier Gene Stice to the board.
Currently the chief executive of consultancy firm Nuovo Corporate, he will focus on potential acquisition opportunities in the leisure and entertainment sectors.
Challenger recently sold its stake in giant observation wheel engineering specialist Starneth to leave it just with equity stakes number of wheels currently under construction such as New York.
Gert Reider is to step down from Challenger’s board following the listing of another of his vehicles, Falcon Media.
Shares rose 44% to 5.75p.
Heavy buying by the directors of Ortac Resources Ltd (LON:OTC) boosted the junior miner for a second day.
Nick von Schirnding, a non-executive, bought 260,000 shares at 3.5p per share to follow the purchase yesterday of 300,00 shares at 3.75p by the Carter Capital Pension Scheme, where Anthony Balme, Ortac’s executive chairman, is a beneficiary.
It was von Schirnding’s first purchase while Anthony Balme’s stake rises to 10.46%.
Baron Oil PLC (LON:BOIL) rallied as it issued a material breach notice to Union Oil and Gas Group for failure to pay US$2 mln for a 30% interest in Block Z-34 in Peru.
Legal action will follow if the amount is not paid promptly and Baron’s subsidiary Gold Oil Peru will resume full control of the block including becoming the operator.
Shares rose 7% to 0.4p.
9.15 am ...Sirius Minerals to move to the big league
Aim is about to lose one of its success stories: Sirius Minerals PLC (LON:SXX).
The developer of the North Yorkshire polyhalite project will be moving to the main market of the London Stock Exchange, probably at the end of next month.
Shares were up 7.5% at 18.82p as the company also issued a quarterly project update that revealed the flagship project remains on time and on budget.
Tasty results?
Anything but, judging by the reaction to prelims from Tasty Plc (LON:TAST), the restaurants operator.
The Wildwood restaurants operator posted a pre-tax loss of £88,000 for 2016, versus a profit the year before of £3.07mln, after taking £3.58mln of impairment charges.
Worse still, the company said 2017’s headline operating profit is expected to be lower than 2016’s, which was £4.8mln.
The shares lost more than a quarter of their value.
Proactive news headlines
Marketing analytics group Ebiquity plc (LON:EBQ) has hailed 2016 as a year of “both progress and change” as it reported a solid rise in full-year profits and revenues. The AIM-listed group saw its underlying pre-tax profits rise by 5.5% to £11.8mln in the full-year to December 31, up from £11.2mln a year earlier, as revenues increased by 9.1% to £83.6mln.
Sound Energy PLC (LON:SOU) has confirmed a large extension to the Tendrara gas field, albeit the TE-8 well's primary target was found to be of a lower quality at this location (some 12 kms from the previous wells).
At the same time, however, Sound's new well did encounter a separate gas-bearing petroleum system. Overall the results help derisk what continues to look like a very significant project.
Tomco Energy Plc (LON:TMC) is rebooting its Utah oil shale project, with a new start-up called TurboShale which will explore new technologies that could potentially unlock the oil at the Holliday shale project.
eSports promoter Gfinity Plc (LON:GFIN) revealed rising revenues and narrowing losses for its first half as the growth company continues to build momentum in its events and commercial partnerships.
2016 may have been a year of shocks, but niche lender S & U Plc (LON:SUS) did its usual thing and turned in a record performance. Shares opened 4.8% higher at 2,194p as the company revealed a 29% year-on-year increase in profit before tax.
Women’s fertility specialist Concepta plc (LON:CPT) has brought in the current chief executive of Philips UK and Ireland, Neil Mesher, as its new non-executive director with immediate effect.
ClearStar, Inc. (LON:CLST) hailed the ‘gig economy’ as the personnel background check specialist posted another year-on-year rise in revenues and gross profits.
As the company flagged back in its January trading update, revenue for the 12 months to 31 December 2016 came in at US$16mln, a 3% year-on-year rise.#
Property fund manager and investor First Property Group PLC (LON:FPO) has sold off one of its Romanian properties for a total consideration of €3.2 million.
The sale of the logistics warehouse in Ploiesti – one of the group’s three directly-held properties in Romania – will results in a profit before tax of €1mln.