SMALL-CAP WINNERS & LOSERS: Moonpig Rises After Strong Valentine's Day

(Alliance News) - The following stocks are the leading risers and fallers among London Main Market small-caps on Thursday.

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SMALL-CAP - WINNERS

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KKV Secured Loan Fund, up 26% at 19.53 pence, 12-month range 0.00p-53.65p. The investment trust receives net proceeds of USD24.3 million from the refinancing of two existing investments in a US based reinsurance company. Expects this to contribute approximately 4.91p towards the net asset value per share based on the last published NAV of 36.19p as at the end of June 2020.

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Wilmington, up 4.4% at 175.4p, 12-month range 102p-252p. London-based information services provider reports rise in interim profit as demand for products remains strong. For six months to December 31, pretax profit rises 35% to GBP5.5 million from GBP4.1 million at same time in 2019. Wilmington reinstates dividend with 2.1p interim payout.

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Moonpig Group, up 3.1% at 447.65p, price range since IPO 355p-475.6p. The online greeting card retailer expects revenue in its current financial year to double from the year before, after it recorded its strongest ever Valentine's Day holiday performance. Says it expects to revenue in the financial year ending April 30 to be about double the GBP173 million recorded the year before. Moonpig debuted on the London Main Market at the start of February with a GBP1.2 billion market capitalisation. It priced its initial public offering at 350 pence per share.

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Keller Group, up 2.0% at 790.81p, 12-month range 417.42p-880.61p. The geotechnical contractor says that its joint venture with construction company VSL International won a GBP167 million contract to carry out geotechnical work for the UK's HS2 train line connecting London and the West Midlands.

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South32, up 1.0% at 149.56p, 12-month range 80.04p-155.14p. The Australian diversified miner raised its dividend for the first half of its financial year, despite reporting a fall in profit and revenue due to weaker prices for its key commodities. For the six months ended December 31, the Perth, Australia-based miner reported pretax profit at USD44 million, down 76% from USD187 million a year before, on revenue that declined 8.7% to USD2.94 billion from USD3.22 billion. South32 declared an interim dividend of 1.4 US cents, up 27% from 1.1 cents the year before.

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SMALL-CAP - LOSERS

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Jet2, down 2.7% at 1,252.40p, 12-month range 182.5p-195p. Shares in the budget carrier are lower as bosses from leading UK airlines are calling on UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson to outline a recovery road map for the industry so they can plan for the summer. The chief executives of British Airways, easyJet, Jet2.com, Ryanair Holdings, Tui and Virgin Atlantic warned that without a clear indication of intent from the government that aviation will restart in the coming months, the UK faces a year of limited connectivity to the rest of the world, and the economic recovery will be hampered. Airlines also call for further economic support for UK aviation to stimulate and strengthen any recovery when it comes. Ryanair was 1.3% lower, easyJet was off 1.3% and Tui was 0.9% down.

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By Arvind Bhunjun; arvindbhunjun@alliancenews.com

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