Morgan Advanced Materials (MGAM) shares rise 14.44% to 321.25p as earnings jump
In its full-year results for the period to 31 December 2021, the engineering company reported a 4.4% increase in group revenue, up to £950.5 million from £910.7 million in the prior year.
Over the period, adjusted operating profit rose 35.8% to £124.5m compared to £91.7m in 2020. Meanwhile, adjusted earnings-per-share also increased by 43.2% to 27.2p in FY21.
As a result of higher cash flow and £20m reported in savings, Morgan Advanced Materials has increased its dividend and cut net debt, which was down by more than a third to £97m. The final payout - 5.9p - took the total payout closer to the formal yearly dividend of 11p.
URU Metals (URU) shares jump 33.33% to 185p as uranium prices see rising remand
Recently, uranium prices have started to rise amid the rising demand for the commodity driven by clean energy players, as well as the recent escalating Ukraine-Russia crisis.
While major economies like the UK have announced that they will utilise nuclear energy as part of their climate change programs, the ongoing Ukraine-Russia crisis is expected to put more pressure on prices since Ukraine stands as the world’s ninth-largest uranium producer.
This week, Jeff Hryhoriw, a spokesperson of Cameco Corporation, the world’s largest publicly traded uranium company, said the price of spot uranium had gone up by 13% in just five days.
“In 2020, Ukraine accounted for about 1.5 per cent of the world’s mined uranium production. And Russia’s two state-owned enterprises together accounted for about 15% of total mined production around the world,” he said, adding that: “It’s a sizable amount and we are watching closely for any action which could potentially affect the industry — especially the evolving suite of sanctions that may be enacted on Russia and Russian state-owned enterprises.”
BlueRock Diamonds (BRD) shares rise 12.35% to 45.5p following gem stone sale
The London-listed diamond producer, which owns and operates a diamond mine in South Africa, said it had sold gem quality stones in the February 2022 tender for a total $0.46m.
The average tender price of the total parcel - $638 per carat - was significantly above the 2021 average of $465 and follows on the back of the strong January 2022 tender, it noted.
“The exceptional average price per carat for the total parcel of £638 marked a 37% jump compared to 2021 and is reflective of the strong retail market conditions and a tightening rough diamond supply of high-quality diamonds such as Kareevlei’s. The current geopolitical environment could create further shortages of rough diamonds,” the company highlighted.
Osirium Technologies (OSI) shares tick up 12.24% to 5.5p as it secures further business wins
On Thursday, the cloud-based cybersecurity software firm said it had seen continued new business wins, bringing the total number of new customers won in January and February 2022 to nine. Four of these contracts are of a greater value than any deal signed in 2021.
Following a record year for number of new customers signed in 2021, Osirium said its pipeline continues to be strong into 2022 and that it is seeing particular opportunities with NHS trusts - both for more licences in line with its “land and expand” strategy, and with new customers.