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Penny Share Review 132

Monday 13 May 2002

The Weekend's Comments

CyberChina Holdings (CYC) attracted some buyers on Friday, The Daily Express from Saturday writes. The shares moved higher to 0.42p up 0.13p on hopes that it was closer to identifying investment opportunities among established Chinese companies. At 14.39 the shares were unchanged at 0.4375p from Friday's close.

Incepta (ITA.L), following last week's results, received a little media attention. The Independent described the results as "dismal" and that the coming year "could be another hard one." The only bright spot may be the UK IPO market picking up. Incepta has advisory roles on the forthcoming Homebase and Yell floats, but advised that the shares are for those investors with "a gambling streak." The Financial Mail on Sunday reported on the purchase of 25,000 shares for £14,612 by deputy chairman, Robert Alcock. Share dealings by directors are often interpreted as a pointer to the future prospects of a business and the Financial Mail remains hopeful about Incepta. It does not believe that the forward p/e of 22 is excessive, a view based on business picking up this year and recommends to hold the shares for now. The shares were unchanged at 61.5p at 14.39 from Friday's close.

The contract with Eagle Star, announced last week, is being taken as a further sign of a turnaround for Miller Fisher Group (MFG.L), Saturday's Times comments. The shares rose 0.75p on Friday to 4.75p. At 14.40 the shares were up 0.5p from Friday's close of 4.6275

NMT Group (NMT) received a less than favourable review in Saturday's Independent. The Company has only recently overcome production problems for its range of safety syringes and has not been helped by the lack of enforcement of legislation in the US that requires hospitals and health organisations to buy medical devices that prevent needlestick injury. The Independent summarises with a warning for investors that "it is still not the time to put your trust in NMT", despite the fact that the share price is almost entirely backed by cash. The shares were unchanged at 3.125p from Friday's close at 14.40.

Derek Pain, The Independent on Saturday's private investment columnist, looked at the woes surrounding Profile Media (PMD). Despite regretting the fact that he didn't sell after the first profit warning in January, he continues to hold the shares in the hope that a return to profit will be witnessed next year. The strategy that he suggests to Profile Media's management that will see it move back into the black is to sell its US operations, perhaps by way of a management buyout, while retaining minority stakes. Holding on is the "lesser of two evils" for Pain as the shares "are hardly worth selling." At 14.40 the shares were down 0.125p to 4.625p from Friday's close of 4.75p.

Shares in Protagona (PTG), The Times from Saturday observes, moved up 0.25p to 2.75p on pre-results buying. The results are published tomorrow (Tuesday 14th May). Investors, according to The Times, have been attracted by the 4p per share of cash on its balance sheet and underlying improvement in trading that was reported last month. The shares at 14.41 were unchanged from Friday's close of 2.625p.

The Times from Saturday also comments on the suspension of the shares in RexOnline (RXN.L) pending a reverse takeover. Speculation among some dealers is that the transaction could mean the return to the stock market of Tony Reeves, who sold his Delphi recruitment business to Adecco for £167m in 1999. The shares were suspended at 50p.

Symphony Plastic Technologies (SYM.L) was the focus of the Weekend Financial Times smaller companies column. The Company is aiming to break even in the second half of the current financial year, which contrasts with the first half pre-tax loss of £1.5m. Local authority interest in degradable garden waste bags has increased and repeat business is now evident, while the Company has been working hard to demonstrate the use of its product beyond the packaging industry. The recent deal with CIBA, the Swiss chemical company, is aimed at developing agricultural sheeting that degrades over a number of weeks - particularly important in potato farming. Moreover, the chief executive Michael Laurier remains optimistic and is of the belief that the potential market is huge as only 200,000 tonnes out of the 1.7m tonnes of plastic used in the UK is recycled. At 15.18 the shares were up 7p to 32.5p from Friday's close of 25.5p.

Today's Announcements

The following companies, in which City Equities customers may have an interest, released announcements to the market this morning. These can be found by entering the relevant company name or ticker code in the search box on this site. Beaufort International (BFG) - new contract.
BioLife Ventures (BVN.L) - EGM results.
Eurasia Mining (EUA) - drilling results.
Host Europe (HER) - holding notification.
John Lusty Group (JLG.L) - statement re financial position.
Keystone Solutions (KYS) - director change.
Mano River Resources (MANA) - issue of equity.
Mercury Recycling Group (MRG) - institutional share sale.
Miller Fisher (MFG.L) - director shareholding.
RexOnline (RXN.L) - share suspension on news of a reverse takeover.

Look Out For This Week

13 May - UK retail sales monitor (Apr)
14 May - Protagona plc Interim results, US retail sales (Apr)
15 May - UK unemployment (Apr), US industrial output (Apr) and inflation (Apr)
16 May -
17 May - Eurozone industrial production.

Compiled by Andrew McLintock

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