Trainline (LON:TRN ) shares increased 14.14% to 311.4p despite posting loss
Shares in the UK digital rail and coach ticketing platform saw a gain and reached a weekly high despite having posted a £43m loss as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Trainline attributes the ‘significant’ impact on rail passenger numbers to the former lockdown and the virus containment measures across the UK and Continental Europe.
"COVID-19 continues to cause significant disruption to the rail and coach industry as regional and national lockdowns are put in place across Europe,” said CEO, Clare Gilmartin.
However, the group said it had taken quick and decisive steps to scale back its cash outflows and ensure it has sufficient long-term liquidity, including securing £162m of liquidity headroom and having ‘a proven ability’ to take mitigating actions to scale back monthly cash outflows.
The group reported loss after tax for H1 FY21 at £39m compared to a £89m loss in the first half of last year when it incurred significant exceptional costs in relation to its June IPO.
The company remains confident that it can navigate an extended downturn if necessary as a result of this headroom which it has secured since the end of August 2020 and will remain resolutely focused “on helping customers and positioning the business for recovery”.
The share price picked up speed on Thursday as its latest results reflected “relief that the company had begun to stem the losses resulting from COVID-19,” said Russ Mould, who added that narrowed losses were achieved by taking significant costs out of the business.
“The company is not out of the woods yet, warning of a risk of a covenant breach alongside these numbers and with renewed lockdown conditions likely to put passenger numbers under yet more pressure,” added Mould, Investment Director of AJ Bell.
Attis Oil & Gas (AIM:AOGL) shares skyrocketed 126.09% to 0.026p with amalgamation
The company told investors that it has entered into a binding agreement with Helium One Treasury, a wholly owned subsidiary of Helium One, a private company focussed on exploration and development of the globally significant Rukwa Helium Project in Tanzania.
The agreement sets out the commercial terms of a proposed merger by way of an amalgamation. The Directors of Attis have described the proposed amalgamation as a ‘potentially transformational and value enhancing transaction for Attis Shareholders.’
The amalgamation values Attis at £1.76m, representing around 0.012p for each Attis Ordinary Share of 0p and Helium One at £6.0m, representing 2.84p for each share.
Helium One has identified a unique, large-scale, high-grade, primary helium project in Tanzania with strategic global implications in resolving the supply-constrained helium market.
Rukwa is an exploration project with 21 Prospects and 4 Leads based on reprocessed seismic lines, high resolution gravity survey, and surface seeps of up to 10.5% helium.
Attis Chairman, Paolo Amoruso said, “With helium wholesale prices doubling over the last two years based on critical under-supply, listed primary helium companies in Canada and Australia have experienced significant share-price appreciation over the last 6 months."
Chariot Oil & Gas (AIM:CHAR ) shares jumped 24.27% to 9.3p with interest at Anchois
The Atlantic focused energy company received an expression of Interest Letter last week to finance the Anchois Gas Development Project in the Lixus Offshore Licence, Morocco.
The Africa Finance Corporation, a pan-African financial institution, confirmed that it would be interested in financing the development of the Anchois discovery and future discoveries.
Chariot has also received a non-binding expression of interest for further lending for the development of the Anchois discovery from an unnamed multinational investment bank.
Both expressions of interest take into account the estimated capital expenditure required to bring the development online, which is expected to be in the region of US$300-500 million.
They also identify Lixus as being an important strategic asset, with strong ESG credentials, that have the potential to help Morocco transition to a low carbon economy, as it seeks to satisfy an anticipated doubling in domestic demand for energy over the next 20 years.
“Both Expression of Interest Letters further endorse our view that the Anchois development is a high value project, with the potential to deliver near term cash flows to Chariot and also transform Morocco's power sector,” said Adonis Pouroulis, Acting CEO of Chariot.
Shares in Chariot Oil & Gas have skyrocketed in value by over 350% since September 2020.
Coats Group (LON:COA ) shares fall 4.17% to 59.9p while demand slowly recovers
Shares in the industrial thread manufacturer dipped today despite highlighting last week that it expects to report underlying profit (EBIT) at US$100-110m for the current financial year, which is materially ahead of house broker Peel Hunt’s forecast of US$80m.
In an update for 1 July 2020 to 31 October 2020, the group said its balance sheet remains strong with cash generation in the period ‘ahead of expectations’ after the decline in sales eased off in its third quarter to 15% over the four months from July 1 from 45% in Q2.
The group said a close focus on cost and cash during 2020 will enable it to selectively invest in attractive organic and inorganic investments amidst the recovery from the pandemic.
It said its manufacturing footprint is now ‘effectively fully operational’ and it sees ‘encouraging improvement in brand and manufacturer order confidence into the peak trading season of September-November where production is primarily for the spring/summer 2021 season.’
It added, ‘The improving performance seen to date and trading outlook for the remainder of 2020 remains encouraging, however, we are mindful that uncertainties related to Covid remain around the recovery profile of our various global end markets as we look into 2021.’