A look at some of the major movers in the small-cap space this week.
What a way to end the week for holders, with OpenText Corporation having agreed to take over British software company Micro Focus International PLC, (LSE: MCRO), in a deal worth £5.1bn including debt.
Micro Focus shareholders will be entitled to 532p per share under the terms of the agreement. This is 98% more than the closing price of Micro Focus as of 24 Aug. Its market capitalization is £1.8bn.
· 98.3 per cent. to the Closing Price of 268 pence per Micro Focus Share on 24 August 2022 (being the last Business Day before the date of this Announcement);
· 79.1 per cent. to the volume-weighted average price of 297 pence per Micro Focus Share for the three-month period ended 24 August 2022 (being the last Business Day before the date of this Announcement); and
· 60.5 per cent. to the volume-weighted average price of 331 pence per Micro Focus Share for the six-month period ended 24 August 2022 (being the last Business Day before the date of this Announcement).
At the close of play yesterday,518.15p +250.35
Mode Global Holdings PLC came a live on Friday with the announcement that the company had received confirmation from the FCA that Mode can add multi-tokens to the Mode App.
Launching later this year, Mode will be gradually adding 10 new tokens to its platform for users to buy and sell. These are: Ethereum, Cardano, Solana, Polygon, British Pound Tether, Polkadot, Dogecoin, Cosmos, USD Coin and Tether. These tokens will be made available through a phased approach.
Rita Liu, Mode CEO comments: “This expansion of tokens available on the platform will be a significant milestone for Mode, and the FCA’s regulatory approval is, we
The share price responded with a 9.09% gain on the day.
Investors in Rockhopper Exploration PLC had a great week, shares jumped 90% to 16p after the positive arbitration result with the Republic of Italy.
After a successful claim against Italy, the £160mln compensation was awarded to the rocket fuel that powered the oiler.
This is related to the UK exploration group’s decision to stop drilling in the Adriatic Sea.
#RKH jumped 90% to 16p after the positive arbitration result with the Republic of Italy.
· Compensation of EUR 190mm
· Plus interest at EURIBOR + 4%, compounded annually from 29 January 2016 until time of paymenthttps://t.co/TpHCl1UFcM— Share_Talk ™ (@Share_Talk) August 24, 2022
While the share price has risen sharply in the past week, Rockhopper is still valued at £85mln or just over half of the headline settlement amount (which does not include the interest payments Italy must pay).
The case was taken on a no-win-no-fee basis by the company’s lawyers. Rockhopper will still receive at least £128mln.
Wednesday’s ruling ended a legal saga which has been simmering in the background since 2017. As long as the Italian authorities do not petition for annulment of the arbitration panel’s unanimous determination under the Energy Charter Treaty, Wednesday’s ruling will be final. They have 120 days to make their next move.
Angus Energy finally delivered the news holders had been waiting for, with the company’s site operations team, with supporting specialists, having introduced and processed well head gas throughout the combined extraction and condensate processing facility at the Saltfleetby.
That propelled the share price to gain 52.70% this week, with a second well still to come online.
Market Summary > @angusenergyplc
LON #ANGS
1.60 GBX+0.35 (28.00%)⤴️today
New 🔝 52-wk high 1.65
25 Aug, 14:14 BST • Disclaimer https://t.co/81p9sXmOQb pic.twitter.com/hl6tuibDH8— Share_Talk ™ (@Share_Talk) August 25, 2022
Well B2 has alone been delivering at an equivalent rate of 5 million standard cubic feet per day, surpassing the Company’s internal expectations, although we expect deliverability to normalise with time. The Company will introduce the stream from the A4 well shortly.
The stream has been passed through the whole process plant including condensate stabilisation and storage tanks as well as gas analysis. Specification gas has been achieved in short tests to date as has an export pressure of approximately 60 barg sufficient for entry into the national transmission system, or “grid”
The Company will make nominations for gas sales when it is satisfied with stable flow, uninterrupted by electronic trips, for an extended period of time is not less than 8 hours of continuous flow which we strongly believe will occur before the end of August thereby meeting the current deadline under the Company’s revised hedge arrangements as notified on 29 July 2022.
As it was revealed this week, the UK effectively stopped importing Russian oil and gas, and the increased interest in natural resources continued to be a benefit.
@i3energy Q2 2022 Operational and Financial Update #I3E Strong Q2 2022 average production of approximately 19,502 barrels of oil equivalent per day (“boepd”), representing a 116% increase over Q1 2021 and an 8% increase over Q1 2022 https://t.co/9sUV7aoECU via @share_talk
— Share_Talk ™ (@Share_Talk) August 26, 2022
Investors believe that the authorities will turn to British producers to cover the shortfall. Well-bought onshore developers IGas Energy PLC, with a 13.41% rise over the week and Egdon Resources PLC 36.47% respectively.
It seems that Igas has a strong fan base, with the stock rising 146.43% in the past month due to hedge fund interest.
Union Jack Oil PLC was up 11.50% during the week and has risen 33.33% over the past month.
UJO owns a 40% stake in the Wressle offshore oil project in Lincolnshire. This has been the driving force behind this movement.
@UnionJackOilplc (AIM #UJO) US$9m Net Revenues Landmark Reached at #Wressle At 25 August 2022, cash balances and short term receivables stood at over £9,460,000, Debt freehttps://t.co/PiFiUCHUeU via @share_talk
— Share_Talk ™ (@Share_Talk) August 26, 2022
Executive Chairman of Union Jack, David Bramhill, commented: ” The revenues of in excess of US$9,000,000 from the Wressle development continue to have a positive impact on the Company’s Balance Sheet.
“Since the last production update published during July 2022, another impressive production performance from the Wressle-1 well has been recorded and the trend remains positive.
“Cash balances are expanding significantly on a monthly basis, and we are funded for G&A, OPEX and contracted or planned CAPEX costs, including any drilling activities for at least the next 12 months.
“We look forward to reporting a positive set of Half Yearly Results for the period ending 30 June 2022, recording a maiden profit, in mid-September 2022.”
Westminster Group PLC, which is still following the risers, saw a 32% increase over the week, and a 17% increase after receiving a security contract.
The AIM All Share fell almost 1.9% due to a risk-off attitude. The FTSE 100 was, however, static.
The micro market has been especially difficult, with shares falling even though the news flow was supportive.
Oxford Cannabinoid Technologies Holdings PLC is a good example. It has delayed one of its phase I clinical trials for pain relief drugs to increase its cash runway until the end of the next fiscal year.
The move was lauded but the shares were sold at a pre-emptive of 7%.
Haydale Graphene Inds PLC was able to capitalise on the interest in its story to raise £5mln. The discount offered to investors who subscribed for new shares led to shares falling 20%
OptiBiotix (36% off) had a tough week. They seemed to have experienced an extreme reaction to an anodyne-trading update.
The opinions expressed here are those of the author
Disclaimer: This blog is provided for general information and It does not constitute investment advice, not buy or sell shares, warrants or bonds in any companies written about within the blog. Information is taken from publicly available sources and any comment is that of the author.
