On the Beach shares climb +8.6% to 124.7p as chief executive buys shares worth £2m
Travel operator On the Beach (OTB) saw its shares climb as founder and chief executive Simon Cooper snapped up 1.5 million shares at 129.54p each, worth just under GBP2.0 million, taking his stake to 9.4 million shares, or 5.6% of the company. Like many travel companies, On The Beach has seen its shares suffer this year as airport chaos and rising inflation has impeded the industry’s ability to capitalise on the pent-up post-pandemic demand for holidays. "Whilst we have entered the second half with resilient sales, visibility of the near term outlook for the UK outbound travel industry remains limited,” said Mr Cooper when the company reported half year sales in May. "Customers are typically booking holidays with shorter lead times and we believe we are yet to see the full impact of the escalating costs of living on bookings."
Power Metal Resources shares jump +8.6% to 1.6p as it updates on it reports progress on its Molopo Farms Complex Project
London listed exploration company Power Metal (POW) saw its shares jump after it said that preparations for its diamond drill programme at its Molopo Farms Complex Project were advancing at pace. The project in Southern Botswana is targeting a large scale nickel-copper-platinum group element discovery, after the discovery of a large electromagnetic conductor which its technical team described as “a very compelling drill target”. “Expanding the geophysics programme to cover two new targets demonstrates the size and scale of the Molopo Farms opportunity”, said chief executive Paul Johnson. “As this work progresses, in parallel, we continue to engage with third parties that have expressed an interest in Molopo Farms and the high-impact exploration work we are undertaking.” The company noted that Botswana “is a secure, supportive and positive operating environment for resource exploration and development."
RM shares dip –37.1% to 62.3p as it swings to a loss and cuts dividend
Educational technology provider RM. (RM.) saw its half year profit plunge from a reported pre-tax profit of £2.9m in 2021 to a loss of £7.2m in the first half of this year despite seeing revenue growth of 4%. The company said that profits had been hit by higher-than-expected expensed costs on its ongoing IT project, which it said had “proved more challenging than anticipated, leading to extended timelines and increased project cost”, as well as higher freight costs. It also warned on profits, pointing to the fact that although school funding is increasing, budgets are being eaten up by higher salary and energy costs. The difficulties also meant the half year ended with higher than expected debt, which led the company to suspend payment of its dividend.
Halfords drops -9.8% to 132.75p as broker Panmure cuts rating
Cycling and motor parts retailer Halfords (HFD) saw its shares slumpy after broker Panmure cut its rating on the shares from Buy to Hold and halved its price target to 150p. The company has seen its shares slide by more than 50% over the last 6 months after it warned in June that annual profits for 2023 would dip to between £65m and £75m as a result of supply constraints and a waning cycling boom. The broker noted that the business was one of the most financially geared retailers and that a focus on its Autocentres had left its retail business “somewhat exposed”. "We believe that there is significant upside in HFD and that it is unlikely to go bust, however harsh the coming winter is for UK retailers”, the broker said. “But we prefer to wait for better visibility."