Greatland Gold plc (LON:GGP) was the market’s biggest gainer in late afternoon trading, surging by 62% to 1.9p, extending yesterday’s advance made when it said it has applied for a new exploration licence to expand its landholding at the Ernest Giles gold project to more than 2,000 kilometres.
If the licence application is successful then the eastern blocks of the Ernest Giles project will encompass roughly 800 square kilometres (km), covering a north-south trending sequence of rocks, some 90 km long, representing an extension of the gold prospective Ernest Giles greenstone sequences.
Metal Tiger PLC(LON:MTR) – which was today revealed to have reduced its holding in Greatland – was also an AIM gainer, up 8.9% to 2.48p on news it has purchased an additional 356,239 ordinary shares in Kingsgate Consolidated Limited (ASX:KCN).
The resources investor said the Kingsgate purchase was made at an average price of circa A$$0.36 (£0.21) per ordinary share, for a total consideration of circa A$ 128,246 (circa £75,933), to bring its total holding in KCN up to 11,939,648 ordinary shares, representing 5.34% of the company.
And Keras Resources PLC added 6.3% at 0.42p after it said Calidus Resources Ltd, in which it holds a 30% interest, announced it has extended Klondyke Drill Programme in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.
The AIM-listed technology and metals development company said Calidus has committed to a further 5,000 metres of drilling before the end of this year at its recent joint venture at Klondyke East.
2.10pm: Nasty spell cast over Merlin Entertainment after update
Merlin Entertainments PLC (LON:MERL) was the biggest FTSE 100 fallers in afternoon trading, plunging 18.5% to 366.5p after the operator of Alton Towers and Madame Tussauds unveiled a fall in trading in the key summer period blaming a series of terror attacks in Britain and unfavourable weather.
Analysts at Liberum Capital placed their rating for Merlin ‘under review’ from ‘hold’ saying: “The poor summer trading adds to our on-going concerns about the Midway division, the reallocation of capex away from the existing estate towards accommodation dilutes returns and the additional £262mln required to build LEGOLAND New York delays returns visibility yet further. The risk/reward profile has shifted more to the downside."
Mediclinic in poor health
Elsewhere, Mediclinic International (LON:MDC) was also a blue chip faller, shedding 5.2% at 640p after a cautious trading update from the Middle East-focused hospitals operator.
The group said bed days sold and inpatient admissions were down 1.9% and 1.3% respectively, impacted by the timing of Easter and a subdued market during the summer months, while revenue per bed day remained broadly flat.
ConvaTec sees bounce
But on the upside, medical products group ConvaTec Group PLC (LON:CTEC) bounced higher after yesterday’s slide following news of slowing growth, adding 3.8% at 212.8p.
On the second line, ASOS (LON:ASC) gained 1.7% at 5,795p after the online fashion retailer increased its outlook for sales growth in its current financial year as it reported full year results.
And challenger bank Virgin Money (LON:VM. also rose, up 4.3% to 301.2p after reporting gross mortgage lending of £6.5bn in the third quarter and saying it had seen robust customer demand due to low unemployment and a resilient housing market.
11.50am: Estate agents lifted by reports of stamp duty cut
Estate agents Foxtons PLC (LON:FOXT) and Countrywide PLC (LON:CWD) both jumped higher in late morning trading, up 9% to 73.25p and 4.6% to 119.25p, lifted by reports the UK may cut stamp duty for first-time buyers.
The Evening Standard newspaper today said Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond is considering a ‘big cut’ in the tax levied on home-buyers in next month’s UK budget.
Selected housebuilders also found support on the report, with mid cap Bellway PLC (LON:BWY), ahead 1.3% at 3,550p was also helped by upbeat trading news as it revealed a 14% increase in revenue for the twelve months ended July 31 to £2.5bn, up from £2.24bn last year, with pre-tax profit more than 12% higher at £560.7mln.
Among the blue chips, Pearson plc (LON:PSON) was 7% higher at 665.5p as the under-pressure educational publisher nudged up its profit guidance and said while structural problems in US higher education were likely to “persist” in the medium-term, there had been some temporary respite.
The FTSE 100-listed group said benefits from the company’s cost-savings programme mean operating profits are now expected to be £576mln-£606mln, up from £546mln-£606mln.
10.20am: Genedrive and dotDigital up after results
Genedrive PLC (LON:GDR) was a strong gainer in early trading, adding 5.6% at 37.5p after the molecular diagnostics platform group revealed a 13.7% rise in full year turnover thanks to a rise in development income and moderately better services income.
In its the first full financial reporting period since the company, formerly known as Epistem Holdings, was rebooted last July, the AIM-listed group’s development income amounted to £2.6mln, up from £2mln in the previous year, while services increased to £3.2mln from £3.1mln, principally because of the US Department of Defense (DoD) biohazard programme.
Meanwhile bulk-email specialist dotDigital Group PLC (LON:DOTD) was also in demand, gaining 7.5% at 78.5p after reporting a strong revenue growth in the second half of the financial year to the end of June.
The AIM-listed group’s full year revenue was bang in line with market expectations at £32.0mln, up 19% from the previous year's top-line number of £26.9mln, with revenue growth outside of the group's UK home market up by 48%, represent ing23% of total revenues.
And miner Ferrum Crescent PLC (LON:FCR) jumped 12.8% higher to 0.06p as it appointed experienced capital markets man and geologist Myles Campion to its board following the departure of chairman Justin Tooth a few weeks ago.
Campion brings with him experience as a former fund manager, as a key man at Barclays Capital when the Barclays mining team was in its heyday, and as an analyst.
Other Proactive news headlines:
Myanmar-focused social media group MySQUAR PLC (LON:MYSQ) has restated last week's trading statement after getting the maths wrong Average monthly revenues of $135,000 per month in the last quarter were a 350% gain compared to the US$29,744 achieved during July-September 2016 rather than the 450% stated.
ANGLE PLC’s (LON:AGL) Parsortix system has outperformed comparable liquid biopsies in a new study undertaken on kidney cancer sufferers in Germany. University Hospital Muenster, an ANGLE customer, compared in detail the ability of four different types of systems to harvest circulating tumour cells (CTCs) for clear cell renal cell carcinoma (kidney cancer) patients.
The cyber security arm of BATM Advanced Communications Limited (LON:BVC) has landed a US$350,000 deal from the defence agency of an undisclosed European country. Its Celare operation will supply monitoring and detection systems as part of a proof of concept contract.
Falcon Media House (LON:FAL), the global digital media group, is to raise £3.4mln through the issue of a convertible loan note carrying an interest rate of 8%.
Stratex International plc (LON:STI) has sold its 13.7% stake in Goldstone Resources for £550,000. Stratex argued that it had been diluted down by a recent fundraise and was no longer able materially to influence strategy. In conjunction with the news Emma Priestley, chief executive of Goldstone, has resigned as non-executive of Stratex.
PCG Entertainment Plc (LON:PGCE) confirmed that it has received £8,249.33 as the first monthly payment under the equity sharing facility arranged by RiverFort Global Capital announced on August 18. The group said that, going forward, the company intends to announce the results of their monthly payments in the second week of the month following the month in which the trading calculations are made.
Metal Tiger PLC(LON:MTR) revealed it has purchased an additional 356,239 ordinary shares in Kingsgate Consolidated Limited (ASX:KCN) at an average price of circa A$$0.36 (£0.21) per ordinary share for a total consideration of circa A$ 128,246 (circa £75,933), to bring its total holding in KCN up to 11,939,648 ordinary shares, representing 5.34% of the company .