Zak Mir takes a look at the standout small caps of the year to date including Altyn, Borders, Cora, Capai, Cobra, Defence, Empire Metals, Fiinu, Hamak, Mast, Mkango, Pensana, Shield, Thor Explorations, Wishbone.
I’ve pulled together a run-through of the standout small-caps and “bulletin board heroes” so far this year. Below I cover the charts I’m watching, key support and resistance levels, momentum signals and my near-term targets for each stock. This is a roundup of where these names stand heading into the autumn and what I’ll be watching next.
“Bank holiday special: how many of these winners will make it to the end of the year?”
Altyngold
Altyn remains one of the most consistent charts in this selection. The shares are trading inside a rising trend channel that dates back to the end of December, with the top of the channel currently pointing to about 940p. Crucially, the stock is trading above recent broken resistance around the 650p area — and we saw a gap-up through resistance at the end of last week, which suggests extra momentum.
One caution: higher highs for late August came with lower RSI readings, which can be a bearish divergence. I’m inclined to stay with the gap and the prevailing trend for now, watching the 650p support level and the channel top as my guide.
Borders and Southern
Borders has seen interest from a number of senior private investors this year. The shares hit the top of their rising trend channel around 10p recently. My preferred scenario is that recent support around 9–9.5p holds — if so I’d be looking for a move up to roughly 14p by the end of October. RSI has been staying above 50 since mid-last month, which helps the bullish case while that level holds.
Cora Gold
I hadn’t looked at Cora for a while because it spent time consolidating, but it had a very strong first half of the year and is now breaking back above its 50-day moving average. There’s a rising trend channel from last September with the top pointing to about 12.75p — a possible end-of-year target — while recent support sits around 5.6–5.66p. A small resistance break around 6.4p late last week is encouraging; above that I’d be looking for the shares to nearly double by year end.
CapAi
CapAi was one of the new winners earlier in the year. Since the big March–May push the shares have mostly been range-bound; we’re currently in the middle of that range. While the stock stays above its 50-day line at roughly 0.43p, I’m looking for a run back to the top of the range near O.90p — possibly next month, conservatively by year-end.
Cobra Resources
Cobra has had a big revival as rare earths became a hot theme again. The shares have already broken through two targets — the last was 2p — and above that I’m looking at 4p based on a resistance line projection from the end of 2020. Near-term, the key support is the latest gap around 3.25p. The move has been very steep since April and momentum looks solid for continuation.
Defence Holdings
Personal favourite of mine — Defence Holdings gapped above July resistance around 0.49p. If that breakout holds I’m looking for 0.68p as soon as the end of September. The RSI has rebounded above 50 and there is an unfilled gap to the upside, both suggesting the stock is on the move. There’s also a company presentation due to be released on X/Twitter soon which could add further momentum.
Empire Metals
Empire Metals has been in a steep rising trend channel since March. The immediate target is around 45p, which I’d hope to see by the end of September. If the market gives it an extra push, best-case acceleration could see the shares head towards 55–60p in October, but the key short-term level is to remain above the broken July resistance of about 34p on a close basis.
Fiinu
Fiinu spiked into the mid-teens earlier and has retraced — support location is important here. As a minimum I want to see support come in on the right side of 10p (ideally above 11–12p). While the stock stays above 10p I’d be looking for a return to the upper teens.
Hamak Gold
Hamak has been one of the year’s big transformations. We’re off the best levels now but the structure shows a rising trend channel from April. The two critical technical points to keep an eye on are (1) staying above the old July resistance at 3.1p and (2) holding the 50-day moving average, which sits around the same level. If those hold, a retest of the highs is a reasonable scenario; if they fail, the chart could drift back into a more bearish phase.
Mast Energy
No concerns here — Mast has blown the lights out and also gapped up at the end of last week. The chart has taken out multiple resistance targets; the most recent key level at 140p was broken and I’m targeting as high as 220p (a resistance on the way down a few years ago) by the end of next month if momentum continues. The shares are already one of the biggest winners this year, up many-fold.
Pensana
Pensana’s turnaround has been large but more measured: roughly 2.5x so far year-to-date. The shares trade in a rising channel with the 50-day moving average around 74p and a top-of-channel target potentially as high as 700p depending on how you read the scale). Momentum looks healthy: multiple support points in the RSI window above neutral 50 and price support above the rising 50-day line, which is a bullish leading indicator.
Shielded Therapeutics
I probably over-check this chart because it keeps giving me signals. There was an ambitious 6.75p target based on the rising channel from May 2024 — that level has now been taken out, which opens up a target retest of the old 2023 peaks between 10–12p. As long as the shares remain above 6.75p the re-test of that 10–12p area is the next objective.
Thor Explorations
Thor has been one of the great winners of the recent past and it’s already cleared two big targets (33p and 48p). With those behind us I’m plotting a fresh target using a rising channel from the 50-day line — the channel top points toward roughly 60–65p into October. Key support to watch is the channel floor and the 50-day area around 42–44p; staying above that keeps the bulls in control.
Wishbone
Wishbone has been flying — up about 6x so far this year. Market cap is still relatively modest and the share price has been moving strongly through successive targets. The stock is trading above 1.45p (which was an earlier target), and I’m looking at a next resistance target near 2.15p (late-2023 resistance on the way down). Momentum and breakout structure make this one to keep on the radar.
Summary and what I’m watching
Many of these small-caps have been transformed this year — some by funding events, some by thematic tailwinds (rare earths, energy, mining), and some by simple chart momentum. My common checklist for these names is:
- Holdings and breakout confirmation: did the stock gap through or close above key resistance?
- Support: is price holding recent broken resistance (now support) and the 50‑day moving average?
- Momentum: is RSI remaining above neutral (50) or is there bearish divergence to worry about?
- Targets: use rising trend-channel tops and prior resistance as logical near-term targets (end of September/October or end-of-year timeframes).
I’ll be watching the channel floors, the 50-day lines and any unfilled gaps for clues on continuation. Expect updates during the week as price action and news events (company presentations, funding announcements) continue to influence these charts.
More updates in the usual way — keep an eye on the charts and manage risk carefully.
Disclaimer & Declaration of Interest:
The information, investment views, and recommendations in this Zaks Traders Cafe interview are provided for general information purposes only. Nothing in this interview should be construed as a promotion or solicitation to buy or sell any financial product relating to any companies under discussion or referred to or to engage in or refrain from doing so or engage in any other transaction. Any opinions or comments are made to the best of the knowledge and belief of the commentator but no responsibility is accepted for actions based on such opinions or comments. The commentators may or may not hold investments in the companies under discussion.
