Howden Joinery Group (LON:HWDN ) shares ticked up 6.20% to 682.1p with upgraded full-year profit
The kitchen and joinery product supplier highlighted to investors this morning that it has upgraded its full-year profit expectations following a period of strong trading.
It said profit before tax for the year to end December 2020 is estimated to be around 10% above the top end of current analyst forecasts, which stand at £123 million -£152 million.
In the period from 1 November 2020 to 28 November 2020, Howden Joinery Group said its Howdens UK depots' total revenue increased by 18.8% and by 17.2% on a same depot basis while total UK revenue for the year to date fell by 5% compared to 2019.
Howden said it expects to release its 2020 Preliminary Results on 25 February 2021.
Panthera Resources (AIM:PAT ) shares rose 25% to 29.5p after kick-starting drilling
Shares in the diversified gold exploration and development company have skyrocketed in value by over 350% since the beginning of October 2020 to open 25% higher this afternoon.
The company informed investors at the beginning of this month that it had initiated drilling at its Paimasa Project in Nigeria through Moydow's JV group Gurara Holdings (Gurara).
The Project is in central Nigeria, around 115km north-northwest of the capital city Abuja. A programme of 300m diamond and 1250m reverse circulation (RC) drilling is proposed.
"The commencement of drilling in Nigeria represents another important milestone as the Company continues to gain momentum after a prolonged hiatus in our field programmes.
Moydow has early mover status in Nigeria where very little systematic, modern exploration has been previously undertaken and it is exciting to be drilling in an area with no historical drilling recorded,” said Mark Bolton, Managing Director of Panther back on 1 December.
Creo Medical Group (AIM:CREO ) shares 21.92% to 203p with first in-man clinical use of its MicroBlate Fine device
The medical device company which is focused on the emerging field of surgical endoscopy said today that it has commenced the first in-man clinical use of its MicroBlate™ Fine device.
The device is believed to be the world's smallest fine needle microwave ablation device available for clinical practice. The device was used to successfully ablate pancreatic tumour tissue under Endoscopic Ultrasound guidance, without any procedural complications.
The MicroBlate™ Fine device has the same dimensions as a routine biopsy needle, greatly reducing the risk of procedural bleeding and allowing very accurate targeting of microwave ablation in highly perfused organs such as the liver, kidney, lung as well as the pancreas.
“This is a fantastic milestone for the Company and the entire Creo team. We look forward to further clinical firsts and regulatory announcements related to our increasing suite of GI devices,” commented Craig Gulliford, Chief Executive Officer of Creo Medical Group.
He added, “More importantly, however, this milestone has helped improve the outcome and made a difference to the life of another of our patients."
Savannah Resources (AIM:SAV ) shares 14.29% to 3.2p as it awaits EIA documents
Shares in the diversified resources company continue to rise today while the group now awaits certain environmental impact assessment (EIA) documents to be confirmed by APA in the coming weeks for the company's wholly owned Mina do Barroso lithium project.
It said the submission underlines its commitment to develop and operate Mina do Barroso in ‘a low impact, responsible and sustainable way which will bring long term social, environmental, economic and demographic benefits to stakeholders and to Portugal.’
"As prescribed by the approval process for EIAs in Portugal, we expected a request from APA for additional information and revisions to the format of our original submission following its initial review. It is a standard part of the process,” said CEO, David Archer.
He added, “Once the EIA document's conformity has been confirmed by APA in the coming weeks it will be published by APA as part of the public consultation process.”
Rank Group (LON:RNK ) shares fell 3.74% to 148.5p while it remains well below pre-pandemic value
Shares dipped today despite its recent steady rise - despite its value remaining well below pre-pandemic levels, the stock has soared by over 80% since the beginning of November.
Shares in the company which operates Mecca Bingo and Grosvenor Casino have seen some recent light relief in recent weeks after the group successfully raised £70 million last month.
The operator said it would use the funds to ‘strengthen the Company’s balance sheet’ and ‘provide ample working capital to operate through this challenging trading environment.’
Shares in the gambling company have shed more than 35% in value since the beginning of August 2020 after the business suffered as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
It said it entered lockdown with ‘significant momentum to revenues and profits driven by its transformation strategy, a tightly controlled cost base and a strong balance sheet.’
The group reported underlying operating profit for 2019/20 of £51.1m which it said reflects the closure of nearly all of its venues businesses from mid-March through to the year end.
Rank expects to rebuild revenues through the year with an increase in footfall expected once social distancing and other supply constraints are reduced and customer confidence returns.