Shares in Huntworth PLC (LON:HNT) sank 9.4% to 120p in late-afternoon trading after the medical communications group reported a net cash outflow despite profit and revenue increases in its interims.
The firm reported a pre-tax profit for the half-year of £10.3mln, up from £9.2mln in the same period last year while revenues climbed to £102.2mln from £94.2mln previously.
However, despite the increases the company recorded a net cash outflow of £1.7mln for the period, a reversal from a £6.4mln cash inflow in the prior year caused primarily by seasonal mixings and a change in the client mix.
Meanwhile, Spectris plc (LON:SXS) saw its shares fall 6.8% to 2,422p after the precision instruments maker left its full-year guidance unchanged despite reporting solid growth in first-half results.
The FTSE 250-listed firm posted a 6% increase in its adjusted pre-tax profit for the six months to the end of June, to £67.4mln, as sales rose by 3% to £728mln, driven by demand from automotive and pharmaceuticals companies.
Spectris’ chief executive John O'Higgins – who announced in May that he would retire in the course of the next 12 months - said: "Our performance in the first half of the year reflects good demand in our end markets.”
He added: “We are pleased to see 5% organic sales growth although we continue to expect that pace to ease a little in the second half, given the tougher comparator with 2017. Overall, our expectations for the full year remain unchanged."
In the risers, Fevertree Drinks PLC (LON:FEVR) fizzed up 7.3% to 3,709p as the posh tonic maker returned to its usual ways with a full-year guidance upgrade.
The Chelsea-based company, one of the biggest on AIM, has made a habit of telling investors that full-year results will be better than expected, although it disappointed investors in May’s trading update when it failed to do so.
That seems to be a blip though, with Fevertree, which also makes a Madagascan Cola and Sicilian Lemonade, claiming that full-year numbers will be “comfortably ahead” of forecasts.
1.00pm: C4X Discovery jumps on grant award from US drug abuse institute
C4X Discovery Holdings PLC (LON:C4XD) shares jumped 7.2% to 96p in lunchtime trading after it was awarded a grant by the US National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA).
The AIM-listed pharmaceuticals maker said the US$480,000 grant would be used to investigate the efficacy of its C4X3256 product in preclinical models of cocaine addiction, further demonstrating the efficacy of C4X3256 across broad addiction indications.
In the fallers, Restauranteur Fulham Shore PLC (LON:FUL) saw its shares shed 1.4% to 10p after its full-year financial results revealed the impacts of property devaluations and unsuccessful sites.
The company, which operates the Franco Manca and The Real Greek brands, detailed £867,000 of impairments following the disappointment of a Franco Manca restaurant in Brighton Marina which failed to perform to expectations.
It is planned that the Brighton Marina restaurant will close later this year, and, the company has now agreed to surrender the lease to the landlord.
Meanwhile, shares in stockbroker Cenkos Securities PLC (LON:CNKS) fell 9.9% to 91p as the company said tough trading conditions had continued in the second quarter.
The good news is that, after a disappointing first quarter in which market volatility dampened investor sentiment, things improved in the second quarter; the bad news is, they did not improve by much, while several transactions that were expected to complete before the end of June did not complete until July.
The stockbroker said the second half of the year is likely to be an improvement on the first but revenue for the full-year is likely to be materially below those recorded in 2017, as those revenue figures included some unusually large fees.
11.00am: Amiad Water Systems rises as it acquires full ownership of Indian subsidiary
Amiad Water Systems Ltd (LON:AFS) shares rose 10.2% to 237p in late morning trading after it acquired full ownership of its Indian subsidiary.
The AIM-listed water treatment manufacturer said it had acquired the remaining 40% of Amiad Filtration Systems (India) that it did not previously own, in a move that the company said reflected its confidence in the Indian market.
The firm added that the acquisition was part of its strategy to acquire 100% ownership of subsidiaries to have a local presence and establish direct sales channels in competitive markets.
Meanwhile, among the fallers, shares in Drax Group PLC (LON:DRX) shed 4.4% to 342.2p after posting a 16% drop in first-half earnings, blaming two outages for restricting electricity generation.
Underlying earnings (EBITDA) for the six months to June 30 came to £10mln, down from £121mln the same period a year ago.
The power producer said a rail loading outage curbed deliveries of pellets at the start of the year. This led to lower power generation at two of the company’s biomass units.
Drax was affected by another outage at one of its biomass units in February.
In the FTSE 250, Superdry PLC (LON:SDRY) slumped 8% to 1,255p after one of its founders sold a 6.7% stake in the fashion retailer.
Julian Dunkerton, co-founder and former chief executive, offloaded 5.5mln shares at 1,285p each, raising an estimated £71mln.
He still owns 15.1mln shares, representing around 18.5% of the company.
The share sale comes after Dunkerton announced in March that he was stepping down from the board by the end of the month to “devote more time to his other business and charitable interests”.
9.30am: Bioquell shares jump as first-half profits rise, margins expand
Bioquell PLC (LON:BQE) saw its shares soar 7.3% to 400p in early morning trading after reporting a jump in profits and expanded margins in its half-year results.
The decontamination technology manufacturer reported a pre-tax profit increase of 41% to £2mln in the first half, while revenues increased 9% to £15.7mln compared to the same period a year ago. The firm also saw an improvement in its gross margins to 54% from 52% in the period.
Meanwhile, Avacta Group PLC (LON: AVCT) surged 52.6% higher to 43.5p after it agreed to a major co-development partnership with a US business.
It is teaming up with Bach BioSciences, a company commercialising the research of William Bachovchin, a professor at Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston.
In what is described as a “ground-breaking” co-invention, the two companies have developed a new class of drug conjugate for cancer.
In the FTSE 250, shares in beverage company Britvic PLC (LON:BVIC) were up 2.3% at 797p after it said it is confident of meeting analysts’ full-year expectations after growing third-quarter revenue, despite the impact of an industry-wide shortage of carbon dioxide.
The owner of the Robinsons and J20 brands reported a 3.4% increase in revenue to £366.9mln for the quarter to July 8 as soft drink sales were boosted by the heat wave in Britain since the implementation of a sugar tax in April.
Britvic has responded to the UK’s sugar levy by introducing more sugar-free and low sugar alternatives. It expects the levy's full impact by the end of the year but said early indications were positive.
Among the fallers, PZ Cussons PLC (LON:PZC) fell 1.8% to 213.8p after it reported a sharper drop in pre-tax profits for the full year than it previously forecast as its Nigerian market suffered a sharp contraction.
The FTSE 250-listed soaps and cosmetics maker reported a pre-tax profit for the year of £66.6mln, down from £89.3mln the year before while revenues fell to £762.6mln from £809.2mln previously.
The drop-off in profits was sharper than the company had predicted in a trading update last month when it said it expected pre-tax profits for the year to be between £80mln-£85mln.
Other Proactive news headlines:
MySQUAR Limited (LON:MYSQ) has launched its second massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) in Myanmar.
Live Company Group PLC (LON:LVCG) said it is launching its BRICKLIVE brand in the Dominican Republic, while also bolstering its presence in South Korea.
Rainbow Rare Earths LTD (LON:RBW) sold 350 tonnes of rare earth concentrate in the three months to end June 2018, up significantly from the 125 tonnes sold in the previous quarter, as the ramp-up to full production continues.
Highlands Natural Resources PLC (LON:HNR) has reported its first revenues during what was a “transformational” six months for the junior oiler. The London-listed firm brought two wells on stream at its East Denver Niobara project in Colorado earlier this year, generating £2.9mln during the four months ended March 31 2018 (2017: Nil).
Learning Technologies Group PLC (LON:LTG) has traded in line with expectations this year and has seen an encouraging increase in recurring revenues.
Sound Energy PLC (LON:SOU) has confirmed the start of civil works in preparation for the planned drilling of the TE-9 well, within the Tendrara licence onshore Morocco. The first stage of civil works sees the construction of an access road to the well site. The explorer also told investors that it has now signed a rig contract for the programme.
Chariot Oil & Gas Limited (LON:CHAR) chief executive Larry Bottomley told investors that the focus for the remainder of 2018 is on the delivery of safe and cost-effective drilling operations in Namibia. The company also continues to seek partnerships throughout its portfolio, mature its exploration prospects and ultimately deliver further funded drilling opportunities.
Savannah Resources PLC (LON:SAV) has appointed experienced lithium consulting engineer Primero Group to lead the feasibility study for the development of the Mina do Barroso lithium project in Portugal.
Custodian REIT PLC (LON:CREI) saw its net asset value per share (NAV) climb to 107.8p at the end of the second quarter. The NAV started the quarter at 107.3p. With a dividend of 1.6375p approved for the period, the NAV total return per share for the quarter was 2.0%.
Europa Oil & Gas Holdings PLC (LON:EOG) has updated on the planning process for the Holmwood project, as it submits an application to make new variations to its proposals. For the proposed exploration well site, the company is now seeking to extend the temporary period of the permission for the well site by a further 3 years.
Jersey Oil & Gas (LON:JOG) has been advised that drilling of the Verbier Well in the UK Continental Shelf region of the North Sea has been pushed back a few months. Originally, the plan was to drill the appraisal well this quarter, but operator Equinor (the new name for Statoil) says Verbier will now be the third well in a UK drilling campaign using the West Phoenix rig as opposed to the first.