Newcastle-upon-Tyne touch sensors manufacturing company Zytronic (ZYT) has announced a trading update including that “revenues for the first five months are approximately 25% ahead year-on-year and we are maintaining operating margins at the improved levels of last year. The order book is 45% ahead of the same period last year”. That sounds good, but what does it mean tangibly?…

Have you enjoyed the last week in the financial markets?  It certainly has been volatile but such is life in the stock market world and – as I have observed before – if you see volatility as more of a threat than an opportunity, get somebody else to manage your investment portfolio as it will make you a lot less stressed and a lot wealthier.  Meanwhile for us obsessed with the world of the financial markets the key always remains how you react.  And that brings me this morning to the just announced FY21 numbers of SIG (SHI).

So what if women and children are being blown to shreds in Kiev. The “good” thing about that war is that it means we must stop using oil and gas produced by the evil Russians – we don’t use much anyway – and thus need to turn to UK Oil & Gas (UKOG) run by Lyin’ Steve Sanderson to bail us out. Talking of which, I wonder how the placing is going …

Wishbone Gold (WSBN) has announced proposed steps to drilling at its Red Setter project and then at its Cottesloe project, whilst the shares are currently 6.6p to buy.

Hello Share Collectors. One of my previous choices with a share price that’s never really caught fire has issued some jolly results for last year. Capita (CPI) is a company that offers computer and digital services to some bumper clients, including our government. The board boasts of ‘A year of significant change with the transformation of Capita now complete: we have established a platform to drive sustainable improving financial performance whilst continuing to strengthen the balance sheet’.

Obviously I do hope Chelsea goes bust and is docked 500 points and finds itself playing next season in the National League so allowing two clubs to be promoted which might just include Wrexham. But what is happening to the Abramovitch sets a dangerous precedent. I discuss this with reference to Evraz  (EVR). I look at Parsley Box (MEAL) and the role of certain institutional investors and also FinnCrap (FCAP) in some detail. I predict Parsley will go bust by the autumn notwithstanding today’s dishonest bailout.  I look at Oxford Cannibinoid (OTCP) and the growing scandal there  and also comment on Eurasia (EUA), then at Chill Brands (CHLL) and that other Standard Listed fraud Supply@ME Capital (SYME). I discuss Summerway Capital (SWC) and Argo Blockchain (ARB) but I start with a parents dilemma.

Northbridge Industrial Services (NBI) has made an update with the disposal of the Tasman drilling equipment and services division now substantially complete. So what of a share price rise to a current 167.5p?…

Supply@ME Capital (SYME) shares are up by more than 50% at time of writing this article at 0.1025p with the rumour mill implying huge revenues were just around the corner at Tradeflow Capital.  The announcement that Tradeflow had cumulatively financed over $1 billion of commodity trade up from $750 million the previous quarter was what seems to have promoted the buying frenzy.

Again I present this as a counter view to a one way traffic in the MSM. I can’t say that I agree with all of what follows. Libertarian commentator Tom Luongo does not hold back. For starters he believes social media should be reserved exclusively for puppy and unicorn videos. As a hardcore libertarian he believes in human rights and is therefore against war as a matter of principle. Wars support the state and they are the worst possible outcome of human interaction.  He says that the Ukraine war is full of disinformation and bias from the media and as always the first casualty in war is the truth and that Russia appears to generally be less biased in its reporting. The Russians feel this is the least bad action they can take regarding Ukraine at this time.

Nomad and broker Finncap (FCAP) led by smug Sam Smith the City’s fave female entrepreneur, so we cannot say anything bad about her company, floated on the AIM Sewer on December 5 2018 at 28p per share. Today, after a ramptastic, but odd, trading statement, the shares are …. 28p to sell, 29p to buy if you are nutso.

Describing itself as “the UK’s leading tile specialist”, Topps Tiles (TPT) has announced “Acquisition of Pro Tiler Ltd & Q2 Trading Update”. So what of a share price currently up to above 59p?…

After the excitement of Wednesday’s market moves comes Thursday…which unsurprisingly after the down and up volatility of the last few days is a bit more boring. We could all probably do with it, although a regular bout of volatility is the markets for you (and I would have it no other way). As for today’s corporate updates, two strike me as being particularly noteworthy, Capita (CPI) and DS Smith (SMDS)…

Previously writing on marine service provider James Fisher & Sons (FSJ), in October with the shares down to circa 530p I noted with it seeing it necessary to make “detailed” reviews to bargepole. The shares last closed at 499p but are currently below 390p on the back of full-year results…

Parsley Box (MEAL) has served up unaudited 2021 numbers which are mouthwateringly awful and announced a £5.9 million placing and £1.1 million open offer which is not underwritten. The price of 20p is a small premium to yesterday’s close but a big discount to when FinnCrap started scuttling around the City with the begging bowl out.

Hello Share Fanciers. It’s amazing the way some companies are now making more money than before covid first struck. One such lucky outfit is Ashtead Group (AHT), the Footsie giant that loans out building tools. This company is an irritation to me. At one stage I was so amazed at the energy of a rising share price that I thought it just couldn’t go on. And so, after holding for ten years or so, I sold the lot. You can guess what happened next…

The fallout from January’s much-delayed AGM and sack-the-board EGM still continues. Whilst the Board survived, the rebels – with ShareSoc in tow – have again cried foul and it remains to be seen how the situation can be resolved.

Mothercare plc (MTC) has made a “Statement re Russia”. As a “global specialist brand for parents and young children”, what does it have to say?…

Sam runs Finncap (FCAP) which earned vast fees floating Parsley Box (MEAL) at 200p last March. The shares are now 17.5p. As a belated celebration of International Women’s Day I have dropped Sam a note.

I start with a recovered Joshua learming a new word. Then it is onto Gfinity (GFIN) and Nigel Wray, Guild ESports (GILD), Parlsey Box (MEAL), the markets and Ukraine, Chill Brands (CHLL) – the day’s biggest gainer (pro tem), a true dead cat bounce and Cineworld (CINE).  There is also a history lesson for GCSE student, our in house Euro loon, my friend, Jonathan Price.

I am sure that almost everyone is feeling more comfortable about the stock market today…except anyone who sold all their positions a day or two ago. Of course one day of positive performance means very little, but that is the markets for you. Nearly fifty percent of days will be up…and nearly fifty percent will be down and the real key – apart from finding some innovative and sensible corporate names – is to buy when others are fearful and sell when others are greedy. So I do hope you bought some more of a share or two you like late last week or early this week. As for today, I’ve been looking at latest corporate numbers and, like the complete sad sack I am, so far have racked up three corporate conference calls…