genedrive (GDR), the point-of-care pharmacogenetic testing company, announced that it has received Breakthrough Device Designation from the FDA for the Genedrive® MT-RNR1 ID Kit. GDR said it was delighted to receive FDA designation of its MT-RNR1 point of care pharmacogenetic test and corresponding recognition of the potential benefits to U.S. patients. The U.S. is an attractive market for this unique test given the potential to save hundreds of individuals from life-long deafness and reduce litigation costs relating to the unwanted side effects from antibiotic use on those carrying the gene variant, and given its size, birth rates, use of diagnostic testing and reimbursement structure.
Comment: Well done to those who from the middle of last week successfully guessed that shares of GDR were not so much worth buying on delayed NICE news, but in the run up to today’s FDA breakthrough. It has to be said that the break of the 2p neckline resistance / 50 day moving average on Wednesday was the giveaway that something was up. April’s 5p-6p resistance zone should be on its way in short order.
Equipmake (AQSE:EQIP), a market leader in engineering-driven differentiated electrification technologies, products and solutions across the automotive, truck, bus and speciality vehicle industries, announces a trading update for the year ended 31 May 2024. EQIP said it was very pleased to have delivered a substantial increase in revenue in the year, a 60% increase on the previous year, highlighting both the increased awareness of, and demands for, its pioneering electrification technologies. Whilst it has clearly incurred more cost than expected in scaling volume in bus repowering, which is of course disappointing, it has collated significant learnings from this and is focussed on optimising operations, bringing in cost reductions and other efficiencies as it scales further. It has strengthened the senior team to help achieve this.
Comment: Shares of EQIP peaked at 12p last summer, versus 4.5p. It will take more than just a strengthened team for the company to regain the momentum it had in the immediate aftermath of its IPO.
Ananda (AQSE:ANA) whose ambition is to be a leading provider of high-quality cannabinoid-based medicines for the treatment of complex, chronic inflammatory pain conditions announced the completion of its Audit & Publication of Annual Report and Accounts. ANA said the most significant corporate event during the year was the completion of the acquisition of MRX Global Limited. MRX has invented a proprietary method to formulate essentially THC-free cannabinoid medicines, the first of which, MRX1, is to be used in a Phase II, double-blind, placebo controlled Randomised Controlled Trial to investigate the effectiveness of MRX1 in patients with chemotherapy induced peripheral neuropathy and in a Phase II, double-blind, RCT pilot study investigating the effectiveness of MRX1 in patients with endometriosis.
Comment: ANA has served up a stellar year both in real terms, but also given the degree of difficulty in terms of operating in what is a pioneering space. Nevertheless, the company has proved both the medicinal opportunity and that of its own value proposition.
SolGold (SOLG) announced that it has entered into a syndicated gold stream agreement with Franco-Nevada (Barbados) Corporation and Osisko Bermuda Limited for the provision of $750 million in project advancement funding and a proportion of development funding in exchange for a percentage of the gold produced from the Cascabel Project. SOLG said it was thrilled to finalize this transformative $750 million gold stream with Franco-Nevada and Osisko. This Agreement not only secures a significant portion of the capital required to fund the construction of Cascabel but also validates the vast potential of the Cascabel Project. The US$100 million dedicated to de-risking and technical work is crucial for the next steps in its project development.
Comment: SOLG has served up the type of funding that most companies can only dream of. It will be interesting to see whether this will be significant enough to get its share price and Cascabel off the ground in a meaningful way.
GreenX Metals (GRX) announced that it has entered into a revised agreement with Greenfields Exploration Pty Ltd (GEX) to acquire up to 100% in the Eleonore North gold project (Eleonore North or the Project) in eastern Greenland. Following renegotiation with GEX, GreenX will acquire a 100% interest in the Eleonore North project through a revised Option Agreement. GreenX will now act as the project manager for Eleonore North. GRX said these revised terms provide GreenX with the opportunity to retain the Project with no further cash payments and conduct further exploration work before making a decision to continue with the Project by 31 December 2025.
Comment: GRX have maintained cruising altitude in the 45p – 55p zone, something which the latest news should continue for the company, especially given the potential of the Eleonore North project.
Guardian Metal Resources (GMET), a mineral exploration and development Company focused on tungsten, copper, silver, gold and lithium within Nevada, USA, announced a further strengthening of the senior advisory and management team to help direct and drive the accelerated exploration, development and corporate activities of Guardian Metal. GMET said as it prepares for the next exciting phase of its development and indeed, is accelerating its operations, it was important that it puts a group of highly skilled people in place to help make this a reality.
Comment: Having nearly quadrupled since last year’s IPO it is clear that GMET has the momentum to achieve even more, especially with a beefed up team, and the run up to what should be significant US government funding as icing on the cake.
EQTEC (EQT), a global technology innovator, updated on positive progress on the settlement agreement with Logik Developments Limited. EQT said while there are still certain conditions to be satisfied for completion, on the basis completion does occur in accordance with the anticipated timetable, the Company would be due to receive £2,000,000 under the settlement agreement.
Comment: Shares of EQT nearly doubled in May, and one would expect them to do the same again should the market smell the imminent arrival of £2m in the form of a settlement agreement.
Blencowe Resources (BRES) announced the receipt of a fourth tranche of funding from the United States International Development Finance Corporation. The DFC is the private sector lending arm of the United States Government. This latest payment of $0.5 million will continue to support the ongoing Orom-Cross Definitive Feasibility Study costs and brings the total grant funding received to US$3.5 million since the Technical Assistance Grant funding agreement was signed with the DFC in September 2023. BRES said it will continue to use a combination of DFC funding and its own funds raised to get the DFS completed in a fashion that does not substantially dilute its shareholders. This is important. It has come a long way through DFS already with minimum impact to its register and it wants to continue that same course of action ahead.
Comment: Given the lay of the land as far as BRES and its funding from the DFC, one would be perhaps rather surprised that the shares have not exceeded their 6p highs in the spring. Perhaps today’s new payment shall remind the market of what BRES has achieved.
ECO Animal Health Group (EAH) revealed its results for the year ended 31 March 2024. Revenue was in-line and adjusted EBITDA ahead of market expectations. Adjusted EBITDA increased to £8.0m (2023: £7.2m). EAH said these results show that ECO continues to maintain a robust market leading position with Aivlosin® while at the same time positioning itself well for future growth with a launch of its first product in the ECOVAXXIN®, poultry vaccine portfolio. ECOVAXXIN® launches are expected to commence from 2025 with a broader portfolio of next-generation animal health products being rolled out in future years.
Comment: Shares of EAH have rallied some 50% since the spring, and in the wake of today’s EBITDA gain one would expect them to rally much more. The run up to next year’s launches provide a decent longer term driver for the stock.
Thor Explorations (THX) provided an operational update for the Segilola Gold mine, located in Nigeria, and for the Company’s mineral exploration properties located in Nigeria and Senegal, for the three months to June 30, 2024. THX said it was pleased by the performance of the Segilola Mine in the Quarter. Following the completion of the upgrade of the CIL circuit in Q1 2024, in the Quarter, it prioritised releasing GIC, by decreasing process plant throughput whilst focussing on increasing recovery and improving circuit efficiency. It was pleased to have made further progress towards fully repaying its senior debt facility by the end of the year with a balance of $7.9 million remaining outstanding and also continuing to make repayments towards its payables, whilst continuing to strengthen its balance sheet.
Comment: Shares of THX should be back where they were last summer in the low 20p’s given the performance of the company, and especially given the ongoing debt repayment.
EnSilica (ENSI), a chip maker of mixed signal ASICs announced a US$7 million order from a new customer. The Order is for the masking – being the non-recurring engineering component – and initial wafer supply for an edge AI processing chip. Based on the customer forecasts, approximately $5 million of revenue is expected to fall into the Company’s current financial year. There is a further potential supply revenue of more than $50 million over the first five years of production. ENSI said it was pleased to obtain a substantial order from a new customer, which further ratifies its business model and strengthens EnSilica’s position as a leading chipmaker. The addition of Edge AI processing will significantly increase the dollar value of the chips that it supplies.
Comment: Having dropped the PR ball, and its share price both in the autumn and the spring, the latest news from the “UK’s Nvidia” could be transformational. This is especially for those who took part in the recent fundraise.
Electric Guitar (ELEG), the digital marketing and advertising company providing first-party data solutions, announced that 3radical Limited, its primary operating subsidiary, has agreed a reseller partnership with Sophus3, a market leader in consumer engagement for the automotive industry. ELEG said it was delighted to be collaborating with Sophus3, a leading consumer engagement technology provider in the automotive industry. As first-party data and audience engagement become increasingly important across all industries, it believed that the Voco and Engage platforms will complement each other and help brands engage more meaningfully with their audiences and convert more sales.
Comment: ELEG should now receive much more love in the market in the wake of today’s news which gives a real world example of the use of its first party data solutions offering. More of the same for the rest of 2024 should give the company the re-rate it deserves.
Vast Resources (VAST), the AIM-listed mining company, announced that it has raised £600,000 at a price of 0.1p. The placees will, in addition, be issued with a warrant giving the right to subscribe for one Ordinary Share at 0.4p per Ordinary Share taken up in the Placing exercisable at any time up until 15 July 2025. The Placing was undertaken by the Company’s joint broker, Axis Capital Markets Ltd. VAST said the net cash raised from the Placing will be used for costs associated with the implementation of the reorganisation plan at Baita Plai in order to lower production costs and bridging the short-term gap in operational expenses while the Company awaits the first tranche of the structural refinancing to close, and to cover near-term corporate obligations, and working capital needs.
Comment: It would appear that it would be cheaper to fund the NHS than Baita Plai. It is to be hoped for the sake of all concerned, perhaps except for the broker, that the repetitive fundraises finally run their course.
Silverbullet (SBDS), a provider of AI-driven digital transformation services and products, is pleased to announce significant new contract wins and a new working capital facility: Silverbullet has successfully secured 20 new contract wins in the first half of the year, reflecting the Company’s strong market position and the growing demand for its innovative products and services. These new contract wins include multinational brands from industry-leading companies across various sectors and represent committed new business revenues of approximately £1.2 million to date. SBDS said it was confident in its ability to meet full-year management expectations and its commitment to achieving a positive EBITDA run rate during the second half of the year, along with positive operating cashflow. Its committed revenues represent a significant portion of its annual budget and it looks forward to continuing this momentum and updating the market in due course.
Comment: After a great bull run going into the start of the year, SBDS have retraced, perhaps as much on the basis that hardly anyone in the market actually knows or understands what the company does. Hopefully today’s news could be the start of a fightback.
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