Asset manager Peter Grandich says that during his forty year career, financial markets have changed to become high-tech casinos. Spot on!

Shares in Versarien (VRS) are being pumped by Bulletin Board speculation that the company has won a “major role” in HS2. If that is the case Versarien should announce the deal with hard numbers via an RNS.  But it has not, it has leaked the story to “Punchline” the No 1 source of Business News in Gloucester. And then cult followers have spread the link all over the internet.

Hello, Share Finders. I’m a longish term holder of Capita (CPI). And so far I’ve been disappointed. Actually, a disaster. But new shareholders may now see a decent return on the shares as business picks up after the worst of Covid. Hot press: Capita has signed a ‘learning services’ contract with a big financial services client in the UK.

International staffing group Impellam (IPEL) has announced results for the first half of the year and that it is seeing “increasing positivity in our customer demands for our managed service and talent solutions across our markets”. This sounds encouraging.

While I was recording bearcast, Zoetic (ZOE) announced that since promising results in July on May 17 – by when it would already have done much of the audit work – it had discovered all about covid so would not now be releasing, what will be piss poor, results (for the year to March 31 2021) until this month. Good news travels fast, bad news is delayed. The real reason for the delay is explained in this podcast. I also cover discussions with the regulators on UK Oil & Gas (UKOG), Supply@ME Capital (SYME), the John Story episode and getting the shyster resigned from Escape Hunt (ESC). I speculate on what he did next. And there is a final appeal for Ian Westbrook. Do not let the loathsome pig Neill Ricketts win by default, please donate HERE

Previously writing on IRN-BRU, Rubicon, Funkin and more drinks company A.G. Barr (BAG), last month with the shares at 530p I concluded decent growth from here would see this valuation become attractive… I’ll look out for the further detail scheduled for next month. Today a half-year trading update…

Previously writing on live events services company Aeorema Communications (AEO), in March with the shares at 28p I reviewed reinvented & well positioned, concluding at least worth continuing to monitor and possibly here worth a small recovery buy. The shares last closed at 28.5p but are currently 37.5p on the back of a trading update…

Previously writing on hydraulic and pneumatic consumables and components and systems business Flowtech Fluidpower (FLO), I concluded in an update on my share tips of the year 2021 last month that the shares are now 123.5p and for those still in, ahead of an update on half-year trading, I currently say hold. Today it has announced that trading update…

Shares in AIM-listed Block Energy (BLOE) are up this morning by 7.5% on no news, although yesterday the company announced a series of nil-cost options being issued to its directors and employees in lieu of salary. In this mad market, nothing surprises me and the dilution is apparently a good thing as far as shareholders are concerned! Meanwhile, more bombs have been dropped by the rebels looking to oust current chairman Philip Dimmock in favour of the last independent NED still standing, Mr Charles Valceschini and commission an independent forensic report into the affairs of the company. Oh dear…..

Back in May I observed that I was ‘still holding onto my profitable position’ in Playtech (PTEC) the gambling software development company. Today it is less profitable than it was back then as over recent weeks the shares have fallen back to levels last seen in November last year. Thankfully I doubled up my holding sixteen months or so ago when almost everything was perceived a bit more cautiously. Anyhow back in May, whilst observing firm multiples and a bit of debt, I did also observe that its ‘online growth has remained very strong in 2021’ and hence I still hoped that Playtech shares had ‘the scope to return to around the six quid level again’. Well despite the romp in Entain (ENT) shares over the last couple of years working out very well, Playtech has been a lot duller. Since May there have been a couple of interesting further announcements too.

You may remember the Equities First Holdings (EFH) scandal which we did so much to expose? Fine chaps like the fraudster Rob Terry of Quindell (QPP) would take out a loan at a big discount to the value of shares pledged. They did not care as they knew the shares were way overvalued. The “lender,” EFH, would dump the stock at once so locking in a profit and when the shares fell a bit more the borrower would default. Easy! How to dump your entire holding in a worthless company while saying you were not. A document filed at Companies House, below, but natch not admitted to via RNS suggests the CEO of the fraud Supply@ME Capital Alessandro Zamboni has (again) been reading the Rob Terry playbook.

Over at Powerhouse Energy (PHE), the chairman is branded a liar by a High Court Judge but because Tim Yeo is a Tory Toff he gets to keep his job. At Verditek (VDTK) – the company that repeatedly announces big contracts to ramp the shares ahead of a placing only for the contracts to evaporate once the mug punters have ponied up, the Tory Toff in charge is Lord David Willetts. Because the good Lord is just the sort of fine fellow to whom we should all doff our cap, normal AIM rules don’t apply.

Hello, Share Casters. Companies connected with TV and films look worth consideration in the present uncertain climate. One of my babies in this field is Zoo Digital (ZOO). It’s produced numbers fairly recently that show Covid has not been a problem for it. And no wonder, when you supply dubbing and subtitles to foreign TV shows. The pandemic confined zillions of us to our sofas – and it was hard for programme makers to keep up their normal output.

Recommending shares in international specialist staffing group Empresaria (EMR) at a 70p offer price last month, we stated there looked reason for confidence that following updates will show further evidence of recovery building and that a full recovery can be delivered – also noting cost action taken last year should come through. Now there has been a half-year trading update and the shares are currently up to 80p.

Having asked for readers tips for 2021 for the prize of 1/2 litre of Tom Winnifrith’s Greek Hovel olive oil (2021 harvest) HERE, the following is an update on performance as at the end of July (to be eligible needed to have selected, on a once per username basis, a buy & sell pick from the LSE or AIM casino and the stocks not to have been suspended at the commencement of 2021)…

First up, thanks for all the tenners for Ian Westbrook. We still have two days to hit the £20,000 make loathsome Neill Ricketts sweat target and are now on £14,694. We are still talking to two potentially generous donors so please do keep the tenners flowing HERE to stop the Versarien (VRS) penny share huckster winning by default. Then onto lying on AIM and also covering up bad news with late releases. I look at Supply@ME Capital (SYME), Verditek (VDTK), Powerhouse Energy (PHE), Cellular Goods (CBX), Escape Hunt (ESC) and, of course, the fraud Zoetic (ZOE). The stench of chumocracy corruption is rife in the City as liars go unpunished. It is most depressing.

Previously writing on self-styled “global leader in sustainable LED lighting for industrial applications” Dialight (DIA), in May with the shares up to 320p I concluded in the context of the prior balance sheet and argued “encouraging start to the year”, I’ll review “interim results… expected to be published in early August” with interest but currently continue to avoid. Today it has announced those interim results…

Tom Winnifrith has this morning described why Non-Executive Director of Escape Hunt (ESC) John Story is not fit to be a plc director and you have to ask what will Story sell to pay his next margin call? He has 10,447,599 Escape Hunt shares and this ‘escape-the-room experiences’ company has today made a trading update, with its shares currently up 10% to 38.5p in response. But for how long?…

I doubt any ShareProphets readers are involved with Aquis-listed Freyherr International Group (FRYR), but news today shows us what a complete shambles it – and the Aquis exchange – really is. Freyherr is a cannabis play with operations in Slovenia. But it can’t get its accounts out due to Covid (natch) and is being booted off Aquis today. But fear not, for Baldrick has a cunning plan…..

AIM-listed Catenae Innovation (CTEA) has announced yet another RNS Reach – this time over a deal with Promake Ltd – but it is still, on the basis of its interims to March, almost revenue free and heading for a cash-crunch by Christmas. But never mind that, it’s got a deal with Promake…..which offers yet more Red Flags!