Mercia Technologies (MERC); reports £2.4m syndicated investment into Medherant
The latest investment will enable Medherant to finalise the selection of three TEPI Patch products to take into clinical development
Mercia Technologies announced an additional £2.0m direct investment as part of a circa £2.4m syndicated investment round into Medherant Limited. Currently Mercia holds a 33.6% direct equity stake in the business.
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Shifting trade politics should not be ignored
Recent failure to agree a US/China deal carries significant implications as Iran tensions rise
Following the breakdown in US/China trade negotiations earlier this month, US and Chinese actions since then point in our view to a protracted period of tariffs. While Trump has placed additional tariffs on Chinese goods, China has allowed the renminbi to depreciate markedly since May 10. Furthermore, Trump’s announcement of restrictions on telecoms suppliers, aimed indirectly at Huawei, indicates the probability of a trade deal in the short-term is remote. We note forecast earnings momentum is easing again after improving earlier in the year and cyclical sector PMIs are under pressure. As tensions in respect of Iran continue to rise, it remains a good time to re-appraise risk levels in portfolios in our view.
Read more...Low & Bonar (LWB); reports strong trading in Q2 compared with Q1
Low & Bonar expects H1 performance to be materially behind that of the previous half year
Low & Bonar posted its trading update for the second quarter to 30 November 2019. The group’s rate of improvement was lower than expected due to continued weakness in a few of the group’s end markets and the slow recovery of customer confidence in the coated technical textiles (CTT) division. Net debt at mid-year is expected to be below £110m.
Read more...StatPro Group (SOG); secures three-year contract with top 20 Fund Administrator
This contract extension is for a minimum value of £2.44m
Statpro Group has secured a three-year contract with a top 20 Fund Administrator for its cloud-based platform, Revolution, with a minimum contract value of £2.44m. The Fund Administrator currently uses Revolution to provide services to over 30 clients for performance, attribution and risk services. This contract extension sees its renewed commitment to Revolution and future expansion of the services available on this platform, comprising fixed income risk and attribution.
Read more...Princess Private Equity (PEY); report total return of +5.6% for Q1 2019
Princess Private Equity announces an increased first interim dividend of EUR 0.29/share
The company published its interim report for the three-month period ended 31 March 2019. NAV increased to EUR 11.51/share, representing a total return of +5.6% for the first quarter. Valuation expansion of 6.5% was the key driver of NAV growth, according to the company.
Read more...Jersey Electricity (JEL); revenue decreases 1% to £59.7m for H1 2019
ersey Electricity says it continues to focus on delivering secure low-carbon electricity supplies
Jersey Electricity posted its half-year results for the six months ended 31 March 2019, reporting PBT of £9.3m, £0.4m less than that of 2018 due to weak Energy profits with lower unit sales as the primary driver. Cost of sales at £36.7m were £0.8m lower than in 2018, mainly due to a fall in JEBS revenue. Operating expenses of £13.1m were £0.5m higher, driven by marginal increases in depreciation, maintenance costs and software licensing.
Read more...Sto (STO3); mild weather drove strong increase in revenues in Q119
The main driver of strong revenue growth was very mild weather in the first quarter of 2019
Sto, a German specialist for thermal insulation composite systems, issued its Q119 interim statement yesterday. Revenues reached €265.3m, up 19.7% year-on-year. The company indicated that losses in Q119 have been significantly smaller than in Q118.
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STS (SF3); revenues and adj. EBITDA under pressure in Q119
Management confident to reach full year targets
Yesterday, STS, a supplier of soft and hard trim components primarily for the commercial vehicle and automotive industry, reported its Q119 results. Weaker demand from the automotive industry resulted in a 12.3% year-on-year decline in revenues and a 47% year-on-year decline in adjusted EBITDA.
Read more...Hermle (MBH); orders show drop in Q119
Hermle indicates in the interim statement that demand in the first quarter had actually been a bit more stable than originally expected
Hermle, a producer of milling machines and machining centres, released its Q119 interim statement yesterday Hermle’s revenues rose by 6% year-on-year and the company indicates a proportionate increase in EBIT. While the company’s revenues rose by 6% year-on-year to €105.9m in the first quarter, orders were down 13.4% year-on-year overall, dropping to €109.9m. Thus the book-to-bill ratio still remained slightly above 1x. The order backlog stood at €152m, unchanged from the end of Q118 and slightly above the 2018’s year-end level of €148m.
Read more...MAX Automation (MXHN); Q119 results show strong order intake in core business
Discontinued operations keep depressing the bottom line
MAX Automation, a group of high-tech automation solution companies, reported Q119 results yesterday. Continuing operation revenues reached €69.3m, up 14% year-on-year. Adjusted for one-time effects, operating EBITDA in the first quarter of 2019 was up by 76.5% year-on-year.
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