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Penny Share Review 238

Monday 07 June 2004

Cambridge Mineral Resources (CMR) received a small mention in The Times on Saturday, after its results during the week reaffirmed that a third party was considering making an offer. Despite the ongoing bid talk, the shares were unmoved at 16.25p at the time of writing today.

The Guardian noted the 8p rise last week in the shares of Intellexis (ILX.L, formerly Time2Learn), ahead of figures today. These results were released this morning and made encouraging reading (click on the link below). The stock was unmoved at 82.5p-mid.

Alan Page's new media vehicle, NWD Group (NWD.L), is on the acquisition trail again, according to Stephen Foley in The Independent today. Mr Foley understands that NWD may seek to raise £5m to fund a three-way takeover and the performance of Twenty First Century since its acquisition has clearly whet an appetite for value enhancement. The speculation had not prompted a change in price from 6.5p, so far today.

The Financial Mail on Sunday featured Pipex Communications (PXC.L) in its 'Aiming High' feature on the Alternative Investment Market. More a commentary than recommendation, the article noted the Company's speedy rise through organic growth and aggressive acquisition, under the guidance of Peter Dubens. The shares were up a shade at 8.75p-mid this morning.

A known investor himself, Edmond Jackson continued his coverage of PlaneStation (PTG.L, formerly Wiggins) in The Sunday Telegraph. In an article of mixed emotions, Mr Jackson is encouraged by the level of City support, as demonstrated by the recent placing of over 100m shares at only a small discount, but feels a bit cheated by the new regime's apparent penchant for disclosure outside the usual RNS channel. In decent volumes again, the shares were off 0.03p at 5.7p-mid.

In an article concerning the emergence of Russia as a force in world oil markets, The Observer (Sunday) pointed to Sibir Energy (SBE) as evidence that caveats for Western investment there should be heeded with extra purpose. Sibir is currently trying to fathom what has happened to a stake worth £100m, which has seemingly been largely written down. The shares remain suspended at 28p, a state they have been since April.

In the Money section of Saturday's The Times, the rather sorry-looking graph of Supercart's (SC.L) share price headed its 'Stockwatch' column. Broker Charles Stanley believes that the fall was on sales of insignificant amounts of stock, which they put down to a lack of news. Supercart needs a big deal in the US or Europe to show it is a serious player in the supermarket trolley arena and trials are underway. After a rally last week, the shares dropped back on Friday and were 0.5p easier at 29.5p today.

In the 'Broker Buys' section of the Daily Mail (Saturday), Bell Lawrie White has Vianet (VIA) on its list. BLW believes that "significant growth is possible", with Vianet apparently the market leader in vending machine telemetry devices. Some investors took notice of the tip and the shares were 0.25p better at 8.38p at the time of writing.

Brian O'Connor, writing in the Daily Mail (Saturday), hailed Virotec International's (VTI) £600,000 contract win with Rhodia. Neil Hume, in The Guardian on the same day, added to the speculation by suggesting that a couple of contracts would be announced within a month, one of which could "transform the company's fortunes." The Rhodia contract sparked a rise in the shares last week and it continued today, with a 1.75p gain to 22.25p.

The events at The Wigmore Group (WGT.L) received a mention in Saturday's The Independent, after the Company's shares returned from suspension after arranging a refinancing package, albeit at a significant discount to the pre-suspension price. Convertible loans and an equity line of credit, in aggregate worth over £2.2m, are due for approval at a forthcoming EGM. The shares continued to be volatile and were 0.08p down at 0.4p this morning.

NB: The prices quoted above were taken around 10.50 am today.

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.

Cambridge Mineral Resources (CMR) - Falkland Islands Update.
Deal Group Media (DGM.L) - Change of Adviser.
Europasia Education (EPE.L) - Joint Venture and Acquisition.
Hereward Ventures (HEV.L) - Placing.
Intellexis (ILX) - Final Results
Ofex Holdings (OFX.L) - International Market Service opened.
Top Ten Holdings (TTH.L) - Results to 28 March 2004.

Look out for this week

Monday, 7 June - Intellexis (ILX), Top Ten Holdings (TTH.L) Finals. UK BRC Sales Monitor (May); US Consumer credit (Apr)
Tuesday, 8 June - UK Trade in Goods and Services (Apr), Industrial Production (Apr).
Wednesday, 9 June - US Wholesale Inventories (Apr).
Thursday, 10 June - UK Bank of England decision; US Jobless claims.
Friday, 11 June - US Producer Prices (May), Trade Balance (Apr).

The next Penny Share Review will be posted on Monday, 14 June 2004.

Compiled by Andrew Thacker

Penny Shares Online - penny shares research and information service.