UK SMALLCAP ROUNDUP: Wills & Co Declared In Default

Dow Jones smallcap news is now on Twitter, allowing you to catch up on the news away from your desk. Go to http://twitter.com/DJ_UK_Smallcaps WILLS & CO STOCKBROKERS LTD, a small cap share dealer, has been declared to be in default by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, four months after the Financial Services Authority stopped the firm from giving investment advice. The FSCS, a statutory fund of last resort, said it is satisfied that Wills & Co. is unable to pay claims against it and said it will start considering claims for compensation against the firm. ALLERGY THERAPEUTICS PLC (AGY.LN) said it agreed to buy its Swiss distributor, in one of its first steps in a new strategy to bolster its position in Europe. The drug developer said it agreed to acquire Teomed AG for 1.2 million Swiss francs ($1.1 million) in cash. At 1414 GMT, shares flat at 11.5 pence. CAPE PLC (CIU.LN), an oil and gas industrial services company, is setting its sights on forming a joint venture in Turkmenistan after earlier announcing a joint venture with SOCAR, the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan, and expects to make an announcement within the next six to 12 months. Martin May, chief executive of Cape, said the company already has a substantial business in the Caspian with a focus on Kazakhstan and the joint venture signed today builds on the strong foundations it has in the region. At 1415 GMT, shares +11.8 pence, or 5.9%, at 212 pence. HYDROGEN GROUP PLC (HYDG.LN), a professional recruitment business, said first-half trading was ahead of its own expectations, boosted in part by a larger proportion of business overseas, and it is now looking to expand further internationally. At 1415 GMT, shares +7 pence, or 5.6%, at 131.5 pence. ABB LTD. (ABB), a Swiss engineer, threw in the towel in a bidding war over U.K. industrial company CHLORIDE GROUP PLC (CHLD.LN), increasing the chances of success for a rival offer by Emerson Electric Co. (EMR) of the U.S. At 1415 GMT, Chloride shares -15.9 pence, or 4.1%, at 370.1 pence. GREENE KING PLC (GNK.LN), a U.K. pub group, plans to accelerate the growth of its estate of managed pubs while shrinking its tenanted pub business as it further increases its exposure to the more profitable eating-out market. In the year to May 2, its pretax profit before exceptional items climbed 3.8% to GBP123 million, meeting analysts' expectations. At 1416 GMT, shares +4.3 pence, or 1.1%, at 396.6 pence. 888 HOLDINGS PLC (888.LN), an online gambling company, said its independent subsidiary Dragonfish has inked a deal with MTV Networks UK & Ireland to launch the music television station's first online gaming website. 888 said the bingo offering, being branded as Up Your Bingo, will initially be layered in to its Dragonfish network and will receive significant marketing exposure across the existing MTV and VIVA network on both TV and online. At 1416 GMT shares +1.75 pence, or 4.9%, at 37.25 pence. CH2M HILL COS. LTD., a U.S. engineer, said it dropped its offer to acquire peer SCOTT WILSON GROUP (SWG.LN), after rival bidder URS Corp. (URS) raised its offer for the U.K. firm. At 1417 GMT Scott Wilson shares +19.25 pence, or 7.2%, at 285.25 pence. GOALS SOCCER CENTRES PLC (GOAL.LN), a five-a-side soccer company, forecast full-year results at the lower end of market expectations, adding that while the soccer World Cup will likely boost its second half performance it is taking a conservative view of any potential uplift. At 1417 GMT shares -8 pence, or 5.4%, at 140 pence. LEED PETROLEUM PLC (LDP.LN), an oil and gas company, said it agreed to pay its bank higher interest rates after production problems hurt earnings and put it in breach of its loans. At 1417 GMT shares -0.8 pence, or 21%, at 2.9 pence. ET-CHINA.COM INTERNATIONAL HOLDINGS LTD. (ETC.LN), a travel company, and financial adviser CLARKSON HILL GROUP PLC's (CLKH.LN) shares were suspended after the companies failed to publish their accounts on time. Et-China suspended at 103.5 pence. Clarkson Hill suspended at 2 pence. CHAARAT GOLD HOLDINGS LTD. (CGH.LN), a Kyrgyzstan-focused gold miner, said it raised GBP3.85 million to fund drilling and studies at its flagship Chaarat project. At 1418 GMT, shares -1.75 pence, or 4.3%, at 39 pence. GEONG INTERNATIONAL LTD. (GNG.LN), a business software company, said it has secured a three-year facility of up to GBP5 million to use on acquisitions. At 1419 GMT shares -2.5 pence, or 7.1%, at 32.5 pence. PROSTRAKAN GROUP PLC (PSK.LN), a drug company, said marketing partner Endo Pharmaceuticals Holdings Inc. (ENDP) submitted fresh data to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration regarding testosterone gel Fortesta in an effort to get it cleared for sale. The FDA said in October 2009 it couldn't approve Fortesta based on the data provided in the two companies' regulatory submissions. At 1419 GMT shares -1.25 pence, or 1.9%, at 66 pence. ZOTEFOAMS PLC (ZTF.LN), a foam manufacturer, said it expects its full-year pretax profit to top market expectations, following a better-than-expected performance during its first half. At 1420 GMT shares +6.5 pence, or 6.9%, at 101 pence. DJ UK Smaller Cos -1.6% AIM -1.3% -By Rachael Gormley, Jason Douglas and Hannah Benjamin, Dow Jones Newswires; +44 (0) 20 7842 9272; uksmallcaps@dowjones.com (END) Dow Jones Newswires July 01, 2010 11:00 ET (15:00 GMT)