Member Info for Sastech

Tosca holdings RNS yesterday, shows they went from 23% to 21.6%
Possibly both Shroders and Tosca re-balancing after recent rise.

Been in here for 3 years as well and yes, many expected a higher 4th quarter after a great 3rd quarter, however, it looks like they may have mined some lower grade in the 4th quarter, possibly as target was going to be at upper end anyway, so prudent.
Major issue of VAT looks like it can be offset against CT, debt coming down, reserves increasing, dividends soon.
Don't forget Singida, which Shanta owns 51% but doesn't need to dilute shareholders.
I'm thinking of buying more if it drops further.

Well done Chris, you got in very close to the low. I bought a little too early at 53 and couldn't believe it had further to fall.
Not the first time I've done that and won't be the last. Still, I can't complain now.
Regarding exit, you could always stay here and take the dividends until you find the next compelling sure fire bet for your funds. I'm still hopeful that it will get to 160 at least.
Good luck whatever you decide.

Also the possibility of paying a dividend, which will encourage others to invest.
Plus there is consolidation with larger players buying smaller assets already with reliable production and long-term prospects, so Shanta could well become a target. We might prefer to stay independent, but it will still push up the share price.

There we go, 52 week high just reached and that's £1 more than the 40p low of last January.
Not bad return if you got in then.

Share price has bounced up today, I wonder if it's only just reacting to the trading update or whether there is other news leaking. Takeover bid perhaps.

I'm holding out for the 160 target, which is still a lot lower than the 230 it was 2 years ago before it crashed.
Since then, the company has improved efficiency and rebuilt its margins, so now in much better shape.
With the economy getting back on track, the share price should keep rising as we move towards the next trading update. If we get in the 140s before the update, we could then bounce up to that 160.
Fingers crossed.

CityAM's first issue of the New Year today gave a couple of tips for 2020, including Centamin, the only pick by Edward Thickness, Energy and Mining:
All that glitters is not gold, but with Centamin you can be confident you’ve got your hands on the real thing.
The gold miner recently rejected a £1.5bn all-share takeover offer from Endeavour, but the smart money’s on a bidding war as consolidation in the gold market continues. With a current dividend of nearly five per cent, and no debt on the balance sheet, this could be one to watch for 2020.

GHT share price now at a 12 months high after a trading update showing revenues up 30% and profits up 344% to £4m and with £9.6m of cash and no debt, this company can make more acquisitions or it could itself become a target for a company wanted to get quick access to solid fintech clients, which take a very long time to cultivate.

There you go Numbers, it reached a new year high for the New Year.
Looking good, Luce.

UPGS went ex dividend today, hence the 3 p drop.
Look forward to receiving a nice dividend payment by the end of the month plus continued price appreciation, all looking good here at the moment.

News today that Barrick Gold is selling $1.5bn of assets that don't fit with its strategy of operating the mines it owns and beginning with its 50% stake in Australia's Kalgoorie.
If it is looking to recycle this cash, could it take a look at SHG to operate alongside Acacia in Tanzania for economic reasons?
It would get SHG on the cheap at the moment even with a premium to the current share price.
https://www.cityam.com/barrick-agrees-sale-of-super-pit-as-it-begins-1-5bn-asset-disposal/

Anyone still around from the Blinkx days may be interested in the following snippet from today's CityAM
'US charges against Mike Lynch involve wire and securities fraud conspiracy, and carry a prison term, it was announced yesterday. The British billionaire who founded scandal-hit software company Autonomy faces an extradition battle after US authorities formally requested he be forced to face fraud charges in an American court'.

Yesterday, Reuters reported Barrick Gold has reached a deal with GoT and can start exporting concentrate again.
What does this mean for SHG? Maybe VAT will get repaid after that or maybe not.
Note completion date is 15th November.
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-barrick-gold-tanzania/barrick-gold-reaches-deal-with-tanzania-over-acacia-mining-idUSKBN1WZ0DL

Szendro, your VAT questions are well made especially now Barrick has taken full ownership of Acacia, which I'm sure we were all hoping would be the catalyst to unhook the VAT rebate.
If you watch the interview with Eric in the link below posted by Andrew, at about 4.45 he is asked about the situation in Tanzania generally and mentions Barrick and seems happy about the general situation and is keen to work with Barrick.
Why would Shanta be working with Barrick? Could he mean politically or operationally?
He doesn't get asked specifically about the VAT rebate and doesn't offer.
He says he is in Tanzania next week, probably the first time since the Acacia deal completed, so let's hope we get some answers soon.
GLA

I'm also in UPGS and Luce and I think the reason for the different response today is probably due to trading volumes.
Luce has a market cap of £129m and UPGS is £60m so roughly half.
But Luce had 321 trades today with £800k of buys whereas UPGS had only 48 trades with buys of £66k.
This lack of volume means the market makers push for a higher bid/offer spread.
Luce bid/offer is 80.00/80.40 whereas UPGS is a ridiculous 71.00/74.00 and this keeps short-term traders away, which in turn reduces volume.
The good news for us longer-term investors is that we can accumulate slowly and eventually be rewarded on a re-rate.
GL all LTHs

The reason this back channel is relevant and the judge has allowed it to be heard, is because S & G claims that it was mislead during the due diligence and negotiations to buy the Professional Services Division. This counter claim aims to support WTGs defence that they were not and indeed how could they have been if they had spies in the camp?
Probably best not to expect the counter claim to result in a pay-out, merely that it supports the defence, helps win the case and results in the escrow being released.

IP Group specialists in funding university spin outs now owns 31% of this.
Must have been an off-book arrangement.

EX-SFO LAWYER SUES FOR WRONGFUL DISMISSAL
A former senior lawyer at the Serious Fraud Office in charge of one of its most high-profile investigations is suing the
agency for unfair dismissal after being accused of swearing at an FBI agent and calling him a “spy”.
Tom Martin was a senior case controller at the UK’s antifraud agency in charge of its probe into
Monaco-based consultancy Unaoil.

The agreement with Xi may well suppress gold in the short term, but there is still the issue with Iran.
Surely the biggest push for gold is the years of QE, which at some point has to drive inflation and gold along with it.