2.45pm: First Property dips on first set of results since deconsolidation of Fprop
Property fund manager First Property Group PLC (LON:FPO) were off 4.9% at 48.5p after the company published its full-year results.
The results were materially affected by the deconsolidation of Fprop Opportunities from the accounts of the group, which took effect on 12 October 2018.
The group's turnover post October 12 reduced by £4.12mln and profit before tax reduced by £1.17mln.
On the bright side, the adjusted net asset value per share increased by 8.31% to 57.48p from 53.07p the year before.
1.30pm: Inland Homes raises the roof
South and south-east England-focused housing company Inland Homes Plc (LON:INL) shot up 5.2% to 61p after receiving good news on its flagship project in Beaconsfield.
The planning application for the site, Wilton Park in Buckinghamshire, was heard by the planning committee on 5 June 2019 and has received a resolution to grant planning permission subject to the signing of an s106 agreement.
READ S106 obligations overview
"After a number of years of hard work on Wilton Park, I am delighted with the positive decision delivered by the planning committee yesterday,” said Stephen Wicks, the chief executive officer of Inland Homes.
12.35pm: Pay-TV firm Amino leaves full-year guidance unchanged
Internet protocol television specialist Amino Technologies PLC (LON:AMO) rose 7.6% to 99.50p after a well-received trading update.
The company said it had made good progress with the transformation programme it announced back in February, which it said will support an acceleration of its focus on value-added software, services and hardware.
Revenues for the six months to the end of May are expected to clock in at around US$35mln, down from US$41.2mln the year before.
11.15am: Joules proves to be a little gem on the high street
Joules Group PLC (LON:JOUL) shares strutted 4.7% higher to 267p after the fashion retailer lifted profit guidance.
In a trading update for the year to May 26, the lifestyle brand said revenue growth and tight cost control meant underlying pre-tax profit would be at the upper end of analysts’ estimates of £14.8mln to £15.3mln, compared to £13.0mln last year.
To show that some retailers are doing well even if a tough environment: Joules FY revenue +17% to £218mn
Despite “challenging trading environment”
Online 50% sales
— Louise Cooper (@Louiseaileen70) June 6, 2019
Joules said the robust margin performance it reported in the first half was maintained throughout the rest of the year.
10.15am: Investors queue up for rare earths project owners as China threatens to pull the plug on rare earths supplies
Rainbow Rare Earths Limited (LON:RBW) shot up 42% to 7.65p and Mkango Reaources Limited (LON:MKA) surged 17% to 9.2p as rare earth prices headed north.
#RBW featured in today's @ElliotSmithCNBC's article on "Why Europe needs to monitor China’s #rareearths threat?"
Our CEO, Martin Eales, said that Non-Chinese producers might look to establish supply chains which bypass China entirely. https://t.co/gJ38UnnqDV
— Rainbow Rare Earths (@RainbowREarths) June 6, 2019
According to the news agency, Reuters, Chinese rare earth prices are set to head higher following reports from Chinese government media outlets that “Beijing could weaponise [sic] its supply-dominance of the prized minerals in its trade war with Washington”.
Investors investorised [sic] heavily in Rainbow, which recently published a maiden JORC-compliant mineral resource for its Gakara rare earths project in Burundi, East Africa, and Mkango, which is developing the Songwe Hill rare earths project in Malawi.
READ Rainbow Rare Earths publishes maiden JORC resource for Gakara
READ Mkango Resources buoyed as rare earths feature in US/China trade spat
9.30am: Autins shifts into reverse; Cluff sinks as it issues shares at 17% discount
Car parts maker The Autins Group PLC (LON:AUTG) shifted sharply into reverse in early trade on Thursday, shedding 29% at 26p, after a downbeat trading update.
Although full-year revenues are expected to be broadly in line with market expectations, the board anticipates that the group's underlying earnings (EBITDA) will be close to break-even for the full year.
The company said that despite cost control measures, margin recovery is expected to be slower than previously anticipated owing to challenging market conditions in the car making industry.
Cluff Natural Resources PLC (LON:CLNR) fell 12% lower to 1.85p after a share placing after the market close last night.
In all, the company raised £15mln; the newly issued shares account for a hefty 61% of the enlarged share capital.
Proactive news headlines:
Salt Lake Potash Ltd (LON:SO4) (ASX:SO4) has received binding commitments to place $20.25 million worth of shares priced at 54 cents each. Funds will go towards ongoing construction of the Lake Way Project which commenced in March 2019.
BigDish PLC (LON:DISH) has raised £2.1mln from an institutional investor to help accelerate the expansion of its restaurant booking platform.
Ariana Resources PLC (LON:AAU) is increasingly confident its Kizilcukur deposit can become a satellite for its existing mine in Turkey after drilling returned high-grade indications of gold. Kerim Sener, managing director, said that the mineralisation encountered within the top 40m of the Zeki vein system at Kizilcukur showed sufficiently high grades and widths to support an open pit operation.
Highlands Natural Resources PLC (LON:HNR) said the owners of the Schrader Oil Co. convenience store chain have invested £100,000 in the business as part of a deal to stock its cannabidiol (CBD) products.
LoopUp Group PLC (LON:LOOP) is to launch a video functionality and an operator-assisted call option as it unveiled the additions to its product suite ahead of a capital markets day on Thursday.
Motif Bio PLC (LON:MTFB) (NASDAQ:MTFB) said the US drug regulator has encouraged the company to carry out a further trial on its antibiotic to allay concerns over possible liver toxicity.
IronRidge Resources Ltd (LON:IRR) has confirmed that its joint venture for the Zaranou Gold Project, in Côte d'Ivoire, will advance as due diligence has been completed. The company and its partners, GeoServices and Atlas Resources, will now take the ‘highly prospective’ exploration project forward.
Bluejay Mining PLC (LON:JAY) told investors that it has now submitted the prefeasibility study for the Dundas ilmenite project in Greenland. The study has been submitted to the mineral licence and safety authority (MLSA) of the Government of Greenland, marking the completion of the final necessary item to facilitate an exploitation application.
Oriole Resources PLC (LON:ORR) has reported good incidences of gold in soil samples from the Bataol zone at its Wapouzé project in Cameroon. The three best samples contained more than 100 ppb (parts per billion) gold – with a peak assay of 210 ppb (0.21 g/t) while there were 45 above 20 ppb and 135 greater than ten.
Primary Health Properties PLC (LON:PHP), the investor in modern primary healthcare facilities, said its portfolio's gross book value has risen substantially since the MedicX merger. The merger with MedicX Fund completed on 14 March, took the FTSE 250-listed firm's portfolio up to 484 properties with a gross book value of more than £2.3bn, up from £1.5bn at the end of 2018.
Custodian REIT PLC (LON:CREI), the commercial property company, delivered a net asset value per share total return of 5.9% in the year to end-March. The net asset value per share eased to 107.1p from 107.3p a year earlier but the dividend per share rose to 6.55p from 6.45p.
KRM22 PLC (LON:KRM) announced that, further to its announcement of 1 May 2019, its executive chairman and CEO, Keith Todd has subscribed for 235,295 new ordinary shares in the company at a price of 85p each. Following the Subscription, the group added, Todd has a beneficial holding of 2,010,591 ordinary shares, representing 10.5% of the company’s issued share capital.
Genel Energy PLC (LON:GENL) has announced the appointment of Mike Adams as technical director with immediate effect as the company concurrently redefines the scope of its chief operating officer (COO) role. A process to hire a new COO is presently underway and the company has decided that the role’s responsibilities will now be split.
Xpediator PLC (LON:XPD), a provider of freight management services, has rung the changes at the top of the management tree. Stephen Blyth, who is currently the chief executive officer, will become the executive chairman and will focus on the strategic direction of the group and acquisition opportunities.
Collagen Solutions PLC (LON:COS) has announced the appointment of Wade Rosen as a non-executive director with immediate effect, following the completion of the strategic investment in the company by Rosen's Diversified, Inc. (RDI) It noted that Rosen currently serves as a director of RDI, and as executive vice president at Scientific Life Solutions, a subsidiary of RDI.
Gaming Realms PLC (LON:GMR) has announced the appointment of one of the UK's leading entrepreneurs and experts on the gaming industry, Chris Ash as a non-executive director with immediate effect. The firm pointed out that, in a career of over 18 years in the industry, he built and sold Ash Gaming Ltd to Playtech PLC for £23mln, which, at the time, was one of the leading gaming content developers in the UK. Whilst at Playtech, Ash also ran the content aggregation business with 25 partner studios and assisted with M&A.