Upstream Share Discussion Threads

[apotheki] 22/4/2024 07:20

KAVANGO RESOURCES PLC / LSE:KAV

ZIM: Hillside Exploration & Production Update

Kavango Resources plc (LSE: KAV), the Southern Africa focussed metals exploration company, is pleased to announce an exploration and production update for the Hillside Gold Project ("Hillside") in Zimbabwe.

Highlights

· Upgrade of exploration target at Prospect 4:

o Up to five potentially mineralised shear zones identified from an Induced Polarisation ("IP") survey, over a 700m width and currently mapped 500m strike.

o Two of the zones identified from the IP survey appear to coincide with a series of parallel artisanal workings.

o Three additional shear zones have been interpreted under slightly thicker cover and remain undiscovered by the artisanal miners with no indications of historic workings.

o Kavango to drill a fence of six holes to test potential for a bulk-minable gold deposit at Prospect 4.

· Final refined gold production at Hillside in March was 899.6g of gold.

o Kavango Mining anticipates significant increase in production, as it commences direct mining.

Ben Turney, Chief Executive of Kavango Resources, commented:

"We are looking forward to testing the bulk-minable gold potential at Prospect 4. The possible presence of four parallel, gold-bearing shear zones makes this an increasingly attractive exploration target.

We were originally looking for an additional high-grade ore source for production at Hillside. Hole SKDD001 was designed simply to test underneath current artisanal gold mining. We initiated the IP survey after the hole was completed.

In terms of the original goal, Hole SKDD001 has been a significant success. Our team saw the opportunity and moved quickly to test it. We are confident in the commercial potential of Prospect 4 to make a meaningful contribution to Kavango Mining. The high-grade upper intersection in Hole SKDD001 represents a near-term, minable opportunity well within trucking distance of the Hillside stamp mills. Kavango Mining is currently developing a work plan to pursue this.

However, it is the presence of the smaller, low-grade lower intersection in the same hole that our exploration team is now pursuing. Hole SKDD001 appears to have clipped a second shear zone, as indicated by results from the IP survey.

We now plan to return to Prospect 4 and drill a fence line of holes to test the IP anomalies and additional parallel artisanal mine workings we have identified. If these prove to be wide gold-bearing shear zones, Prospect 4 could represent an unanticipated bulk-minable opportunity.

We are currently drilling at the Nara Project and will mobilise the rig immediately back to Hillside on completion there.

In the meantime, I am very pleased to report that Kavango Mining was operationally profitable in March, its first month of trading. We produced 899g of gold. Our original goal was to reach 1kg of production over the course of 2024, so we are well ahead of schedule.

We now anticipate Kavango Mining is on course to be a consistently profitable business unit over 2024. We have a strong foundation to build on, as we increase direct production, open new sources of ore and invest in production capacity at Hillside. We look forward to providing further updates on our progress."

[master rsi] 21/4/2024 22:39

Sunday newspaper round-up: IDS, Ocado, Foxtons

(Sharecast News) - Asset manager Redwheel told regulators they should reduce the UK postal service's legal obligations. The move followed a failed buyout attempt by Daniel Kretinsky for International Distributions Services, its parent company. The billionaire investor was said to be evaluating a possible improved bid. The company meanwhile has petitioned Ofcom to let it cut the number of days per week during which it must deliver second-class mail from six to two or three. That would save the company £300m and see it shrink its workforce by 1,000. According to Redwheel, as first reported by the Sunday Times, the enforced costs of its legal obligations left the company "vulnerable to corporate predators". - Guardian

Ocado's shareholders are pushing the company to study the possibility of a New York listing as opposed to that in London. Indeed, the idea was discussed in detail with shareholders in recent weeks. Those discussions follow the 90% drop in the company's share price from its peak hit during lockdown. At one point, Ocado's market value had overtaken those of Sainsbury's, Marks & Spencer and Morrison's combined. - The Sunday Telegraph

Foxtons has brought on NM Rothschild as advisers following pressure from some large shareholders for the company to delist and pursue a sale. But other big investors believe that the outfit is on the mend under its new boss, Guy Gittins, who was chosen in 2022. Michael Rapps from Converium Capital thinks Foxtons could fetch between 70p or £1 a share if sold. Among the potential buyers are Platinum Equity, Oakley Capital and European private equity outfit Emeria. - The Sunday Times

888, the owner of William Hill, has put aside over £100m to cover possible legal action overseas. A court in Austria has ruled that any companies doing business in the country have broken the law and must return players' losses. That is because Casinos Austria, which is backed by the state, has had a monopoly on gambling in Austria since 2016. Hence, some gamblers in Europe had moved to recover their losses. 888 however said that its "extensive" legal advice and opinion received left it "absolutely confident" of its legal and regulatory position. - Financial Mail on Sunday

[master rsi] 21/4/2024 22:11

UK manufacturers missing out on investment potential - research

(Alliance News) - Manufacturers are missing out on billions of investment potential as economic and political uncertainty as well as increased costs remain barriers to accessing finance, according to a report.

Make UK said its research suggested that one in four manufacturing firms would increase their investment if access to finance was improved.

Access to finance will be critical for investment plans in the next two years in critical categories such as capital equipment, automation, energy efficiency and cybersecurity, said the report.

More than half of 100 companies surveyed said they were unaware of the range of public sources of finance and government schemes tailored towards manufacturers.

Fhaheen Khan of Make UK, said: "Access to finance is like fuel for manufacturers. Without it many manufacturers would be unable to make the continuous investments in capacity and innovation which are so essential in such a dynamic sector with an ever-changing external environment.

"However, there is currently significant investment which is lying untapped due to a lack of awareness among companies of the private and public options available to them. If we can unlock the options that finance provides, then it will produce significant potential for manufacturers."

Make UK estimated that manufacturers were missing out on up to GBP10 billion of investment potential.

[master rsi] 21/4/2024 21:48

SUNDAY PAPERS

Share tips, comment and bids

The Sunday Times (Share tip): Costain is building itself up again.

The Sunday Telegraph: Unilever could be forced to hold onto a multi-billion pound slice of its ice cream empire, according to senior City sources, as the sheer size of the operations make it difficult to find a buyer.

The Sunday Times: Norges, Norway’s £1.3tn sovereign wealth fund, is in advanced talks to buy out British Land’s 50% share of Meadowhall for about £363m, including debt.
The Sunday Telegraph (Comment): Why Joe Biden’s real enemy is the price of oil.

The Sunday Times (Comment): How EY’s failed break-up caused a year of resentment.

[master rsi] 21/4/2024 21:21

SUNDAY PAPERS

Business and economics

The Observer: Jeremy Hunt is reportedly considering stamp duty and national insurance cuts before the next general election.

The Observer: Taylor Swift’s new album, The Tortured Poets Department, has broken the record for Spotify’s most-streamed in a day, the music platform said.

The Sunday Telegraph: Asda’s billionaire bosses forged ahead with a botched IT transition despite being warned in advance that thousands of workers would be paid incorrectly.

Mail on Sunday: Controversial tax rebate agent Brooksdale has entered liquidation, leaving customers of the firm questioning whether they will receive money claimed on their behalf.

The Sunday Telegraph: Thames Water and a group of lenders to its parent company have drafted in lawyers amid a brewing fallout over the troubled supplier’s future.

The Sunday Times: Amid surging demand among British drinkers for Spanish lager, the family-owned Estrella Damm is investing €60m in building a state-of-the-art brewery in Bedford.

The Sunday Times: Heathrow airport handed its outgoing chief executive a record £6.4m payday despite nearly two in five planes failing to depart on time.

The Sunday Times: Universal Music Group boss Lucian Grainge, the Londoner who worked his way up to the top of the global entertainment industry, landed a pay package of €139m last year.

Mail on Sunday: The Government should stage an inheritance tax raid on unspent pension pots and close other loopholes, says leading think tank the Institute for Fiscal Studies.

The Observer: The House of Representatives voted 360 to 58 on the updated divest-or-ban bill that could lead to the first time ever that the US government has passed a law to shut down an entire social media platform.

The Observer: Volkswagen workers at the carmaker’s Chattanooga plant in Tennessee have voted to unionize with the United Auto Workers, a historic victory for the union and the labour movement’s efforts to expand to the southern US.

The Sunday Times: Neil Woodford, the fund manager who presided over one of Britain’s worst investment scandals, is reinventing himself as an economic commentator and began by pointing to ‘many reasons to be cheerful’ about the country’s prospects.

The Sunday Times: The Azure division of the tech colossus Microsoft handles the digital lives of more than a billion people, but a breach by people linked to the Chinese government has put it in the line of fire.

[master rsi] 21/4/2024 20:57

SUNDAY PAPERS

Top stories

The Sunday Telegraph: Ocado is under pressure from shareholders to consider abandoning London for New York, threatening another severe blow to the beleaguered UK stock market.

The Sunday Times: Redwheel, Royal Mail’s second-biggest independent shareholder, has publicly backed the board for rejecting the ‘corporate predator’ Daniel Kretinsky’s audacious swoop.

[seedoftongo] 21/4/2024 07:36

You put your heart and soul into this Master lad .
Did you draw lots of road maps when a youngster ?

[master rsi] 20/4/2024 22:48

Best performing shares ( UPS ) during April


Share
Mid
Highest
% Change
Rank


BOOM
247.50
322.50
30.30
1


EEE
7.00
8.65
23.57
2


HE1
1.175
1.375
17.02
3


GGP
5.775
6.35
9.96
4


KEFI
0.564
0.590
4.61
5


88E
0.245
0.255
4.08
6


JOG
164.00
167.00
1.83
7


ARB
13.50
13.50
0.00
8


BCE
0.0575
0.0575
0.00
9


CMH
1.25
1.25
0.00
10

[master rsi] 20/4/2024 00:07

KEFI 0.554p UT spread 0.554 v 0.56p

once again share price has bounced up from support

[master rsi] 19/4/2024 22:46

Directors deals: Ashtead Technology finance director adds to holdings
(Sharecast News) - Ashtead Technology's finance director sold some shares to cover her obligations with HMRC after exercising options under the company's incentive plan.

However, she pocketed the remainder of the shares.

Ingrid Stewart exercised nil cost options over 164,610 shares on 18 April, of which she sold 82,471.

Following the transaction she was left with 317,925 shares representing 0,4% of the company's share capital.

As of 1555 BST shares of Ashtead Technology were edging up by 0.41% to 738p in a falling market and roughly 7% beneath their all-time highs.

Top Director Buys

Robert Walters (RWA)

Director name: Bower,David

Amount purchased: 10,000 @ 380.00p

Value: £38,000.00

Robert Walters (RWA)

Director name: Van de Walle,Leslie

Amount purchased: 7,000 @ 389.50p

Value: £27,265.00

Dp Poland (DPP)

Director name: Dibb,Jeremy

Amount purchased: 241,935 @ 9.92p

Value: £23,999.95

Alpha Real Trust Ltd. (ARTL)

Director name: Simpson,William (Bill)

Amount purchased: 10,000 @ 142.00p

Value: �14,200.00

Empresaria Group (EMR)

Director name: Anderson,Tim

Amount purchased: 30,000 @ 35.99p

Value: £10,797.00

Schroder Asian Total Return Investment Company (ATR)

Director name: Judd ,Jasper

Amount purchased: 2,283 @ 435.61p

Value: �9,944.98

Empresaria Group (EMR)

Director name: Anderson,Tim

Amount purchased: 5,000 @ 35.99p

Value: £1,799.50



Top Director Sells

Ashtead Technology Holdings (AT.)

Director name: Stewart,Ingrid

Amount sold: 82,471 @ 743.00p

Value: £612,759.52

[master rsi] 19/4/2024 22:24

MARKET REPORT
LONDON MARKET CLOSE: Stocks tentative on rising Israel-Iran tensions

(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London closed up on Friday, as investors showed caution in reaction to Israel carrying out retaliatory strikes on the Iranian central province of Isfahan.

The FTSE 100 index closed up 18.80 points, or 0.2%, at 7,895.85. The FTSE 250 ended down 59.37 points, 0.3%, at 19,391.30, and the AIM All-Share closed up 0.38 of a point, 0.1%, at 745.67.

Across the week, they were down 1.3%, 1.7% and 1.4% respectively.

The Cboe UK 100 ended up 0.2% at 788.44, the Cboe UK 250 closed down 0.3% at 16,792.60, and the Cboe Small Companies ended up 0.1% at 14,785.62.

Oil prices jumped before settling a little lower, after Iran's state media reported explosions in the central province of Isfahan on Friday. US media quoted officials saying Israel had carried out retaliatory strikes on its arch-rival.

Israel had previously warned it would hit back after Iran fired missiles and drones at Israel almost a week ago, in retaliation for a deadly strike on Iran's embassy in Syria which Tehran blamed on its foe.

Fears of a major regional spillover from the Gaza war have since soared.

A barrel of Brent oil fell to USD87.01 at the London equities close on Friday, from USD87.15 at the European equities close on Thursday. It had previously, however, traded as high as USD90.71.

"In a week that started with Iran's drone and missile attack on Israel and which ended with Israel's retaliatory strike on Iran, it is somewhat surprising that the price of Brent crude fell. After all, the risk to physical supply of oil has clearly risen with the latest attack on Iran," said Capital Economics analyst Caroline Bain.

"However, we think it is not in the interests of either Iran or Israel to disrupt the regional trade in energy and that, for now, it will be off limits even if retaliatory attacks continue."

Tensions in the Middle East have also boosted the dollar's "position", ING analysts said.

Against the dollar, sterling fell to USD1.2410 at the London equities close on Friday, from USD1.2464 on Thursday. The euro rose to USD1.0664 from USD1.0660. Against the yen, the buck bought JPY154.52, down from JPY154.60.

A recent re-assessment of Federal Reserve interest rate expectations has supported the dollar. The Fed's most recent projections suggested three rate cuts could be in the offing this year, though at least one of those has been priced out by the market.

New York Fed President John Williams on Thursday said the US central bank feels no "urgency to cut interest rates".

The next Fed decision is on May 1. Another rate hold is expected.

Brown Brothers Harriman commented: "The fundamental backdrop of US economic outperformance coupled with hawkish Fed rhetoric remains in play. Fed officials have started to mention the possibility of hikes.

"To be clear, a hike this year is unlikely. However, just the fact that Fed officials are acknowledging the possibility is a huge shift from its previous intent to begin cutting rates this year. If market pricing were to shift in favour of hikes, the impact on markets would be huge. Stay tuned."

Stocks in New York were mixed at the London equities close, with the DJIA up 0.4%, the S&P 500 index down 0.4%, and the Nasdaq Composite down 1.1%.

UK retail sales volumes climbed year-on-year in March, but were flat on the month before, numbers showed.

According to the Office for National Statistics, retail sales rose 0.8% in March from a year prior, though were still 1.2% below the pre-pandemic level in February 2020.

Sales had declined 0.3% on-year in February.

Sales were flat in March from February, following a 0.1% rise in February from January. February's reading was upwardly revised. Retail sales volumes for that month were initially reported to have been flat from January.

The outcome for March fell short of FXStreet-cited market consensus. Growth of 0.3% had been expected.

Pantheon Macroeconomics analyst Rob Wood said that "stagnating March retail sales provide a disappointing end to the quarter."

However, stagnation is a significant turnaround from the large retail volumes falls seen over the past two years, he noted, while retail sales volumes rebounded 1.9% quarter-to-quarter in the first three months of 2024.

This will add 0.1 percentage points to first quarter gross domestic product, he estimated.

In European equities on Friday, the CAC 40 in Paris closed marginally down, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt ended down 0.5%.

German producer prices fell year-on-year in March, but climbed on-month, numbers showed.

According to Destatis, producer prices declined 2.9% in March from a year prior, easing from a 4.1% annual fall in February.

On a monthly basis, they rose 0.2% in March, topping the FXStreet cited consensus, which had predicted producer prices to be flat from February.

In February, producer prices declined 0.4% from January. Producer prices had risen 0.2% in January from December.

In London's FTSE 100, Mondi topped gains, rising 9.3%.

The packaging and paper company said it does not plan on making an offer for DS Smith, which lost 9.9%.

In early March, DS Smith and Mondi agreed to an in principal takeover deal, which valued DS Smith shares at 373 pence each. At the time, Mondi said the possible merger would create a company worth more than GBP10 billion.

On Friday, Mondi said it has considered the value of the takeover to its shareholders, and based on this, has decided against the transaction.

On Tuesday, DS Smith accepted an takeover approach from International Paper Co, a Tennessee-based pulp and paper supplier.

The offer will see DS Smith shareholders receive 0.1285 International Paper shares for every one held in DS Smith. The bid values DS Smith at around GBP5.8 billion on a fully diluted basis, and its enterprise value at around GBP7.8 billion.

In the FTSE 250, Man Group led losses, falling 6.6%.

The active investment manager focused on private markets said assets under management on March 31 were USD175.7 billion, up 4.9% from USD167.5 billion on December 31.

Man Group suffered USD1.6 billion in net outflows in the first quarter of 2024, but recorded a positive investment performance of USD9.8 billion to create the rise in AuM.

Alternative strategies saw USD3.2 billion in net outflows in the recent quarter, balanced by net inflows of USD1.6 billion into Long-only strategies.

Elsewhere in London, 888 rose 4.8%.

The sports betting and gambling company, which owns brands including 888casino and William Hill, said first-quarter revenue declined but topped expectations, ahead of a possible name change.

First-quarter revenue was GBP431 million, down 3.2% on-year but ahead of the GBP420 million to GBP430 million it had predicted. 888 noted that revenue was up, however, by 2% from the fourth quarter of 2023.

It explained that this reflects "a continuation of positive sequential quarter-on-quarter trends." UK & Ireland online revenue alone fell 1% due to "reduced sports venues and increased customer investment across the Cheltenham Festival in comparison to last year", which a 4% growth in gaming could not offset.

888 shareholders will also get a vote on its possible name change to Evoke PLC at its annual general meeting in May.

Gold traded at USD2,391.85 an ounce at the London equities close on Friday, up from USD2,384.41 late Thursday.

In Monday's UK corporate calendar, Mobico posts its full-year results.

The economic calendar has the release of the latest interest rate decision for China.

[master rsi] 19/4/2024 22:07

DOW

Finished 211 points higher

[master rsi] 19/4/2024 16:23

How the UPS are performing today

[master rsi] 19/4/2024 16:09

Broker tips: DS Smith, Man Group
Sharecast News) - Numis downgraded its stance on packaging group DS Smith on Friday to 'hold' from 'buy' as it said there was insufficient upside to retain a buy rating.

It noted the shares have rallied by around 30% year-to-date and now trade on FY25 EV/ EBITDA and price-to-earning multiples of 6.8x and 11.3x, respectively, which are close to the stock's medium-term averages.

"The competitive tension indicated by two competing bidders for DS Smith raises the prospect of a materially higher valuation of the stock in the near-term," Numis said.

"While we cannot rule out a competitive bid situation emerging, we think prospects may be limited by Mondi's historic lack of appetite for large scale M&A and modest valuations paid for previous acquisitions."

Numis said it expects the shares to trade closer to the value implied by International Paper's proposal and revised its price target up to 415p from 385p.

Numis put out the research note before Mondi announced that it would not be making an offer for the rival packaging group, clearing the path for a takeover by International Paper.

Investment management firm Man Group reported an improvement in assets under manager in the first quarter, but net outflows during the period caught investors by surprise, causing shares to drop sharply.

The company said AUM totalled $175.7bn by 31 March, up from the $167.5bn reported at the end of the 2023 financial year.

The increase was a result of a $9.8bn positive swing in investment performance, slightly offset by $1.6bn in net outflows.

However, according to analysts at Jefferies, consensus forecasts were for positive net flows of $1.3bn.

In terms of product categories, notable increases in AUM were recorded for 'Japan equity', 'credit and convertibles' and 'global equity'.

"Occasional roadbumps are not unexpected at Man, but the fact that AUM - incl. Absolute Return, driven by strong performance and despite the outflows - is at record highs demonstrates the enduring and more consistent growth in mgmt. fee profitability," Jefferies said.

[master rsi] 19/4/2024 15:21

Billionaire Issa nearing deal to sell Asda stake to TDR Capital

(Sharecast News) - Private equity firm TDR Capital is reportedly closing in on a deal to buy petrol station billionaire Zuber Issa's stake in supermarket chain Asda.

Bloomberg on Friday cited people familiar with the discussions as saying that the agreement for Issa's 22.5% stake would give TDR majority control and could be announced in coming weeks.

The sources declined to specify the terms being discussed.

It was understood that TDR's holding in Asda would rise to about two thirds, and the transaction would further the dismantling of the relationship between brothers Zuber and Mohsin Issa.

[master rsi] 19/4/2024 14:42

DOW

Opening with 119 points higher

[master rsi] 19/4/2024 13:50

US pre-open: Stocks to edge down amid Middle East tensions

(Sharecast News) - US futures pointed to a slightly weaker open on Wall Street on Friday amid growing in tensions in the Middle East.
At 1320 BST, Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 futures were down 0.1%, while Nasdaq futures were 0.2% lower.

Sentiment took a hit across markets following reports that Israel had launched a retaliatory attack on Iran.

Joshua Mahony, chief market analyst at Scope Markets, said: "The widely anticipated Israeli retaliation in Iran finally took place, and whilst the initial spike in oil may have highlighted the initial fear of further escalation, we have seen both equities and crude reverse some of those preliminary moves. The Israeli decision to attack an area close to a nuclear facility serves as a warning that they could strike such highly sensitive targets in the future should they wish. However, the Israeli response has been notably more reserved, thanks no doubt to the influence of Western allies who have sought to avoid a wider conflict developing.

"Given the fact that Iran had provided advanced warning of their attack, it is clear that the events of the past week appear to be more about showing their willingness to act rather than actually seeking to incite a war between the two nuclear nations. For markets this is a best case scenario and should hopefully remove the fears that have been playing out within equity and energy markets in particular."