3 August 2009
An old country pub last weekend with a group of “usual suspects” enjoying their sedate Sunday pint, in the beer garden. Suddenly a young fellow started berating his ladyfriend in the hearing of everyone. He certainly had his say, but the young lady kept her peace and when the storm blew itself out, responded in blistering fashion for fully five minutes without so much as a word from the crestfallen gent. Just when it seemed certain they would be removed by the late arriving staff, the next moment they were wrapped in a warm embrace.
Microscope is going to have a rant - or two - this week, but his hope that a young lady will wrap herself similarly at its end may prove elusive!
Transdermal Cosmetics (PLUS: TRCP) provided its first announcement of 2009 on Tuesday, which can be read by clicking here
Results delayed due to an unforeseen delay in the audit process.
Your Diarist wonders how many other £100 million+ market cap companies have taken this long to make an announcement in 2009?
In its previous announcement in December ,which can be read by clicking here, the company said
“...The Company is currently working towards a launch of its product range into the US market early in the New Year. Further details will be provided in due course...”
Did anything happen?
Incidentally, the interim loss was £404k on zero turnover!
Does anything ever happen?
Your Diarist accepts fully that there is nothing to imply that the company has broken any rules, and while he is certainly not a prospective investor in a business of this sort, he believes this creates a situation that creates a mockery that does the market no favours.
He believes therefore that, if rules do not currently exist to enable PLUS to pressurize the company to improve its newsflow, then there ought to be some dramatic changes to said rules, otherwise Microscope personally takes the view that while light regulation has its advantages, featherweight rules do not.
Meanwhile rant number two concerns Ex-AIM inmate, Infonic (AIM:IFNC) - formerly Corpora on OFEX - as a private company revealed that in 2008 it lost over £14 million, including £9.5 million in the second half. The company went into administration earlier this year, only to then be bought by a team believed by some to have included former management, within 48 hours.
£9.5 million in six months represents a loss of about an average of £80,000 a day. (Not far off £1 a second!). Every day, including Sundays!
This despite saying in interims:
“...We are well placed for continued growth. We took the decision to invest in our sales infrastructure and whilst we did not expect to see this bear fruit in the first half we have seen very positive signs that the strategy is starting to yield.
We are conscious that as we go into a period of economic uncertainty it will be essential not only to grow sales but also to consolidate costs. Plans are already in place to balance the two competing challenges of growth and cost control and we are confident we can achieve this. Trading in all divisions remains strong and we are currently seeing no decline in customer enquiries. We are hopeful that this trend will continue...”
In the second half there was no profit warning unless Your (ranting) Diarist missed it.
Incidentally, what are the rules about Directors' duties, and dereliction of same, anyone?
Back on the regular PLUS market, and rant free from here on, St Helen's Finance (PLUS: SHF) announced turnover down around 25% and a small loss, but said it was cautiously optimistic of an improvement going forward, while Arsenal (PLUS: AFC) announced another player sale to Manchester City, this time defender Kolo Toure. As with the transfer of Emmanuel Adebayor, mentioned last week, no figures were released.
Waltech (PLUS: WALP) said it was to leave the market, and having received well over the 75% of irrevocable undertakings required for such a move, was not required to hold a General Meeting to approve it. Microscope finds this, personally, is once again a rule that does nothing to help small shareholders and disapproves of such a rule!
Great Western Mining (PLUS: GWMO) reported optimistic sampling reports from Nevada.
Antnano, (PLUS: ANAP) a provider of security detection equipment, announced an interim loss of £566k on increased turnover. The company also announced a placing at 22p, above the current share price, another at 17p, and the resignation of its CEO.
Netalogue Technologies (PLUS: NTLP), the e-commerce solutions group, said it is seeing a delay in orders in its first half, but hoped that larger contracts and a greater percentage of repeat revenues would seep through in the medium term to compensate. Shares were unmoved on the day at 2.375p.
Reform Pharma (PLUS: REPP), which acquires and develops products for human medical and pharmaceutical markets, announced interims and said it was in confidential talks relating to mainly “late stage” products with potential E.U. application. The somewhat threadbare interim accounts for this admittedly early stage company showed a loss of just over £50,000.
SIPP's provider Pointon York (PLUS: PYV) reported a loss of £629,000, while ZIMNRG (PLUS: ZIMO) said it was continuing to explore mining and energy investments in Zimbabwe, while revealing a loss of £66,000.
Agricola Resources* (PLUS: AGRI) - Microscope's small holding still subterranean! - said it was now going to concentrate on gold exploration in the Atlas Mountains of Morocco. Your Diarist finds this surprising in the light of recent comments by the company's partner Beowulf (AIM: BEO), of interest from several quarters in their joint ventures in Sweden at Ballek.
Microscope will be away this coming week but back with you, all being equal, in a fortnight.
Meantime, mind how you go with any angry gals! -
M1croscope@yahoo.com
MICROscope is a prolific private investor with a wealth of investment experience. The comments and views in the MICROscope diaries are the writers’ own.
* Valiant Investments, the parent company of this website, is a shareholder in Agricola Resources plc, as is the writer of the MICROscope Diaries.