Polypipe (PLP) shares ticks up 9.53% to 563p following £210m acquisition
The London-listed manufacturer of plastic piping systems revealed to investors last night that it had entered into an agreement to buy Adey which is known as a UK market leader in providing solutions to protect water-based heating systems, for a total of £210m in cash.
Deutsche Bank analysts said the price move was ‘an attractive price given the expectation that Adey will almost immediately increase group earnings by a double-digit percentage.’
To help to fund the deal, Polypipe announced this morning that it had raised £96.3m at a price of 515p a share, a 0.2% premium to its closing mid-market share price of 514p.
MediaZest (MDZ) shares soared 140.00% to 0.12p with new business wins
The creative audio-visual firm said it has already made progress on new business this year with the group having won mandates for several new projects for the new financial year.
This includes the extension of existing recurring revenue contracts with a long-standing client, and a large project for a new client to be delivered in 1H of the financial year.
The new business wins are now expected to generate over £0.35m in revenue and include client engagements which the Directors believe ‘have the potential to grow substantially.’
Clear Leisure (CLP) shares rose 82.48% to 1.25p following £0.68m fundraise
The technology-focused investment firm raised £0.68m through the placing of 113,333,333 shares at 0.25p each, with the proceeds to be used for working capital purposes and for selective further investments in its growing portfolio of technology businesses.
Francesco Gardin, Executive Chairman and CEO of Clear Leisure, said the funds were needed for the Group “to substantially increase the necessary and material computing power in our crypto currencies data centre, to make it a competitive business, once relocated.”
He outlined that the second use of the funds for the Group is “to complete the preparatory work for the launch of the Company's previously announced EIS Investment Fund.”
He added, “It also gives us sufficient resources to support our current investment portfolio, if and when required, as well as looking at new and exciting technology opportunities."
N4 Pharma (N4P) shares rose 46.9% to 11.9p after receiving European Patent
The specialist pharmaceutical group which is developing Nuvec®, a novel delivery system for cancer treatments and vaccines, said it has achieved “a key milestone” after the Group was granted a European Patent in respect of Nuvec® by the European Patent Office ("EPO").
The European patent approval is in relation to Nuvec® 's composition, particulate materials and methods for making the particulate materials. Under the patent, N4 Pharma has the exclusive worldwide rights to Nuvec for therapeutic uses in humans and animals.
"The receipt of the intention to grant the primary Patent in respect of Nuvec® for Europe is a key milestone for the Company and should see other key jurisdictions where patents remain pending for Nuvec® follow suit,” said Nigel Theobald, Chief Executive of N4 Pharma.
Prior to the formal grant, the University of Queensland will now need to confirm the particulars and translations with the patent office prior to publication of the grant, after which the patent will be validated on a country-by-country basis throughout Europe.
SSP Group (SSPG) shares fell 11.92% to 279p as group makes £500m cash call
Shares in the UK food and beverage operator were down during Thursday trading after the company issued a response to press speculation regarding its draw down on the Bank of England CCFF as well as the possibility of the Group undertaking an equity raise.
The statement was released after market close on Wednesday and followed a report from Financial Times which stated that the group was planning a rights issue of up to £500m.
SSP raised £216m in March last year while it has also borrowed £300m from the Government's coronavirus lending scheme. SSP said in its preliminary results, released on 17 December 2020, that its current monthly cash burn rate was around £25 - 30m and that it expects to remain in this range during the second quarter ending 31 March 2021.
‘Whilst SSP is confident in the medium-term recovery of the travel market, there remains significant uncertainty with regard to COVID-19 and associated travel restrictions.
In that context, SSP continues to evaluate the merits of a range of funding options, both debt and equity, that would further strengthen its balance sheet,’ the company stated.