CleanTech Lithium (CTL), an exploration and development company advancing lithium projects in Chile, announce its audited Final Results for the twelve months to 31 December 2023. CTL said in the year ahead it will send battery grade lithium samples to potential strategic partners and off-takers to start product qualification, as part of the development of the construction finance to bring Laguna Verde into operation. The current drilling programme at LV will feed into a further resource assessment and a maiden reserve estimation this year, supporting the pre-feasibility study (PFS), which is underway and targeted for completion in Q3 2024. This paves the way for the next phase of development, as the Company advances towards the ambition to deliver a premium ´green´ lithium product into a market that’s increasingly keen to demonstrate a sustainable supply chain of battery materials.
Comment: With Steve Kessler’s safe pair of hands steering the CTL ship in recent weeks we have seen the share price recover well, as the market look forward to further high grade lithium samples and a chunky maiden reserve estimate. The re-rate seems set to continue.
Tertiary Minerals (TYM) provided a drilling update for the Konkola West Copper Project in Zambia. The first hole at the Konkola West Copper Project, hole number KWDD001, being drilled as part of an earn-in agreement with a subsidiary of KoBold Metals Company and local partner Mwashia Resources Ltd, was recently reported by KoBold to be at a depth of 1,023m down-hole and continuing. TYM said it was delighted with the level of technical detail being provided to the Company by KoBold on an ongoing basis and was encouraged to see the known mine stratigraphy marker horizons present in this hole. It was fortunate to be on site in the early stages of this drillhole. KoBold is investing heavily in new facilities in the area for its Mingomba Project and is dedicating substantial financial and technical resources to make the drilling of the Konkola West Copper Project a success.
Comment: Shares of TYM have been making positive noises both fundamentally, like today, and on a technical basis, where we appear to be in the run up to a 50 / 200 day moving average golden cross, typically the strongest part of the cycle. 0.17p is a technical target by the end of June.
Corero Network Security (CNS), the distributed denial of service protection specialists, announced a three-year partnership agreement with leading global hosting services provider RoyaleHosting to integrate Corero’s award-winning DDoS mitigation technology across RoyaleHosting’s global network infrastructure. CNS said companies worldwide continue to view Corero as the go-to choice for premium DDoS protection and RoyaleHosting’s decision to integrate Corero technology within their Shield Panel will ensure customers experience the best in DDoS protection.
Comment: One would imagine that only 1 in 10 reading CNS’s RNS actually understand what DDoS mitigation technology. But with the share price heading for 3 year highs this is probably just a side issue.
SYME (SYME), the fintech business, announced progress towards a strategic alliance with p-Chip Corporation by signing a MOU aimed at establishing a framework for collaboration between the parties to study the integration of the respective technologies. SYME said it was delighted to partner with p-Chip and its unprecedented technology. It is great to see their first adoption also in the agri-food industry, considering the important funding commitment recently announced by the first Italian banking group to provide support to such supply chains.
Comment: Despite rather harsh, defamatory (and presumably totally unfounded comments from certain swivel eyed shorting parties to get the share price down, it would appear that SYME is still on the stock market, and having happily raised £1.5m, with decent cash in the bank.
Oracle Power (ORCP), the project developer, revealed a TR1 by Peel Hunt where it was in at 23% on the share register.
Rockfire Resources (ROCK), the base metal, precious metal, and critical mineral exploration company, announced that the Company’s on-going drilling program at its 100%-owned Molaoi zinc deposit in Greece has intersected high-grade zinc 400m to the north of the currently defined resource area. The current drilling programme is aimed at extending the zinc resource both at depth and to the north. ROCK said its strategy to increase the resource at Molaoi to at least 400,000 tonnes of zinc equivalent metal remains on track, with a quality hit 400m north of the main resource outline. This now opens the resource up towards the north and may allow for a rapid expansion of tonnes of contained zinc in the resource.
Comment: After the odd detour it looks as though ROCK is keen on sticking to its knitting, in terms of proving up its star Molaoi asset. Hopefully, confidence will gradually return here amongst investors.
Cirata (CRTA), announced that OPPO (GuangDong OPPO Mobile Telecommunications Corp, Ltd.) has renewed its existing maintenance and support contract for Cirata’s Git MultiSite for Gerrit product for a period of 3 years. The total contract value is $592,000.
Comment: Shares of Cirata have rallied well from new lows under 40p earlier this month. It remains to be seen whether a $600k contract is enough to turn the tide on what has been one of the market’s biggest blowouts.
Calnex Solutions (CLX) the shame and disappointment of the December 2023 results are out. Turnover fell from £27.4m to £16.3m and last year’s profit of £7.2m became a loss before tax of £0.3k. The poor economy subdued activity and resulted into its global customer base ‘deferring’ investment into telecoms infrastructure. CLX’s software and hardware provide measurement solutions for the telecommunications sector and are experts in digital network synchronisation and emulation.The current year remains a challenge, but recent product innovations are reported to be gaining traction and the company anticipate a return to growth in FY25. As the operational gearing that impacted profitability should enable a strong recovery once activity levels normalise. There is cash of £11.9m and the dividend is being maintained at 0.93p for a yield of 1.4%.
Comment: At 62.5p with a £54.7m Mkt Cap the shares could be set to drift in the short term.
Premier African Minerals (PREM) announced a subscription today for 781,250,000 new ordinary shares to raise approximately £1.25 million before expenses at an issue price of 0.16 pence per new ordinary share primarily for the Zulu Lithium and Tantalum Project. PREM said it expects that periodic updates will be provided on the overall plant performance until such time as a steady of state of continuance production has been achieved, Premier expects thereafter to begin providing quarterly production reports for Zulu from Q3 of 2024.
Comment: Given that several days have past since the last fundraise, a fresh one was clearly overdue. Even so, the proof of the pudding now remains production.
Shoe Zone (SHOE) announced its interim results for the 26 weeks to 30 March 2024. Profit before tax of £2.6m (2023 H1: £1.5m). Adjusted profit before tax of £2.5m (2023 H1: £2.5m). Net cash of £4.1m (2023 H1: £12.9m). SHOE said it delivered a robust performance in the Period against a continuing backdrop of consumer uncertainty and macroeconomic volatility. Total revenues increased by 1.5% having traded out of 27 fewer stores compared to 12 months ago, with digital revenue increasing by 19.6%. The performance further demonstrates the resilience of its business and the success of its ongoing strategy.
Comment: The switch to digital here looks to be what the bulls are going to have to hang their hat on. However, the share price decline since March can be explained by the fall in cash from nearly £13m to £4m, which may scare some.
Oncimmune (ONC), an autoantibody profiling company, announced its unaudited interim results for the six months ended 29 February 2024. ONC said it was very pleased to see that the Company’s performance in its first half of FY2024 has already generated revenues greater than the ImmunoINSIGHTSTM business during the whole of FY2023, demonstrating that our new strategic approach and commercial efforts are gaining traction. The momentum is continuing to build as its relatively new commercial team has now found its stride and it expects H2 FY2024 to deliver further growth as it continues to execute on its refocused strategy.
Comment: The London market really needs its biotechs to perk up, and it would appear that ONC is in the frame as a turnaround situation in this respect. Ideally, there is a break out of the recent 15p – 30p trading range over the summer.
AstraZeneca (AZN) revealed its bold ambition to deliver $80 billion in Total Revenue by 2030, up from $45.8 billion in 2023. This will be achieved through significant growth in its existing oncology, biopharmaceuticals and rare disease portfolio, and by launching an expected 20 new medicines before the end of the decade. To drive sustained growth beyond 2030, the Company will continue investing in transformative new technologies and platforms that will shape the future of medicine. AZN said it was planning to launch 20 new medicines by 2030, many with the potential to generate more than $5 billion in peak year revenues. The breadth of its portfolio together with continued investment in innovation supports sustained growth well past the end of the decade.
Comment: A decent “we shall fight them on the beaches” call from AZN regarding its plan for the next 6 years, as it puts behind the COVID vaccine episode behind it. Perhaps this time it will do a little more homework on its 20 new medicines prior to launch.
GSK (GSK) announced positive headline results from the phase III clinical trials SWIFT-1 and SWIFT-2, which assessed the efficacy and safety of depemokimab versus placebo in adults and adolescents with severe asthma with type 2 inflammation characterised by blood eosinophil count.1,2. GSK said these results add to the established body of evidence that targeted inhibition of IL-5 plays a key role in reducing type 2 inflammation that drives severe asthma exacerbations. Depemokimab could offer the possibility of sustained inhibition of this pathway, with a dosing schedule of just two injections per year. This is important as research shows that 73% of physicians believe longer dosing intervals would be beneficial to patients who are often juggling multiple therapies.
Comment: It is gratifying that GSK is clearly moving well in the asthma area, something which remains a critical condition especially for the young. With news like today’s the breakout for the shares through £17.20 could lead to £19 over the summer.
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