I think Malcolm commented on WH Smith (SMWH) a couple of years plus ago, but I am not particularly surprised that it has not troubled the ShareProphets scorers since. We all know the name, most of us visit the shops at least a few times each year and if you are in an airport, well, you can quite easily find yourself getting surprisingly little change from a tenner for just a couple of items. Local monopolies, eh?...

I’ve been a fan of Central Asia Metals (CAML) for some time now, and although the share price isn’t much higher currently, I still see it ultimately growing into a bigger company.

Hello, Share Pushers. I suspect not many of us will be over-keen to invest in the bigger power supply companies. The headwinds are worrying. Government caps on prices, big competition from smaller and cheaper companies, fuelled by comparison websites, and the rising oil price. And we could probably think of a few more...

Nine days ago Concepta (CPT) was pushing aggressively at UK Investor - having just re-announced a deal with Boots - and mug punters responded, paying up to 3.75p to buy shares in the market. Last week I was made an insider. Apparently two big funds were desperate for shares and a placing to raise £2 million was underway...

Online fashion retailer ASOS (ASC) has announced results for its half year ended 28th February 2019 and that “we are confident of a stronger performance in H2 and are leaving FY guidance unchanged”. Hmmm…

In today's bearcast I look at Cabot Energy (CAB), Andalas Energy (ADL), Eve Sleep (EVE), Indivior (INDV) and, with Neil Woodford in mind,  Allied Minds (ALM).  To join the roll call of heros go HERE 

Interior furnishings company Walker Greenbank (WGB) “is pleased to announce its financial results for the 12 month period ended 31 January 2019”. The shares commenced that year approaching 130p, ended it at sub 90p and are currently sub 60p – and slightly further lower on the results announcement. “Pleased to announce”?...

There has been lots of good news for Neil Woodford – aside from the joke listing of Proton Partners on NEX. Last night, AIM-listed investment company Crystal Amber Fund Limited (CRS) announced its monthly NAV and in it we learn that it wants to take over the running of Allied Minds with a view to winding it down. The good news is it thinks it can realise the assets at a big premium to the then current share price. The bad news…..well, the criticisms of the current arrangements are eyewatering. Was Neil really happy with this, and if not, why did he not do something about it?

When I last wrote up a set of numbers from Tesco (TSCO), I concluded that '240/250p is a fairer price for Tesco today and I have seen nothing from its results or those from its sector peers to dissuade me from this'. The short view would be this remains fully on track and my core view on the shares remains positive. Today's edging up of the shares (as I write) deeper into the 230s pence zone reflects this and tells me still to be long of the stock...

I am afraid that I still continue to get a stream of letters from victims of charlatan and snake oil salesman Darren Winters. His courses are worthless and the claims he makes are just untrue, as the ASA noted here. Yet Winters regards brushes with the ASA or The Sheriff of AIM fighting on behalf of victims in the Courts  (and winning!) as just another cost of business and carries on, as he has done for almost 20 years, with industrial scale larceny. What follows is the teacher’s tale 

Just to make this one a bit harder, to win this contest you need to name all six of the fine upstanding citizens below and then tell me which is the odd one out and why ( and its nothing to do with gender). The first to give me seven correct answers in the comments section below wins a semi naked photo of Britain's top share blogger ( mornings only), Thirsty Paul Scott. The deadline for en tries is midnight tonight, Wednesday 10 April.

“Gooch & Housego PLC (AIM: GHH), the specialist manufacturer of photonic components & systems, announces that trading in the six months to 31 March 2019 was in line with management's expectations”. But I note an 1150p share price is down from approaching 1900p in October and more than 1500p as recently as February. Hmmm…

Hello, Share Picklers. It’s obvious that medical companies are risky. But the smaller outfits provide more perilous opportunities. The giants seem big enough to absorb the failures and obstacles to obtaining the necessary licences. AstraZeneca (AZN), like GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), is a jumbo pharmaceutical company and is worth a look...

Previously writing on online gaming operator Stride Gaming (STR), I noted in November having been set to record a provision of £4m… £7.1m Gambling Commission fine. In February this year, the company updated including “trading performance since the start of the financial year has been broadly in line with the board's expectations”. Now a further “Trading update”…

Tom Winnifrith noted in yesterday’s Bearcast that Neil Woodford had once again been selling liquid dividend payers in order to meet redemptions and so that Neil can prove the market wrong (reference Keir – which  slid alarmingly again today). In this case it was New River REIT (NRR), where he appears to have sold a large chunk of his holding to his old mates over at Invesco last Tuesday.

Yes we have exchanged at both ends and will move next Monday to the Grim North. And the good news is that the cost of that move is on you, the grateful taxpayer. I explain all before looking at Debenhams (DEB), Sosandar (SOS), Concepta (CPT) and 7Digital (7DIG). PS Why not join the roll call of heros today HERE.

Previously writing on self-styled “global leader in B2B end-to-end digital music solutions” 7digital (7DIG) in January it was “pleased to confirm” restructuring completion… but much it shouldn’t be pleased to confirm! – as the shares slumped below 1p… and still I concluded, I suggest “a detailed statement of the expected out-turn for 2018 once accounting issues related to the restructuring and revenue recognition under IFRS 15 have been resolved” won’t be pretty. That there’s the restructuring with “several operations and offices have been closed or discontinued and staff numbers reduced in all locations” and the HMRC situation of circa £0.417 million seemingly relying on expected receipts, also suggest financial distress – and hopefully my prior warnings were heeded. Natch, still a sell / avoid. Now a“Business Update”…

AIM-listed Sosandar (SOS) has announced a full year trading update. On the surface, a rise in revenues to £4.4 million, up 228%, looks good but the statement is a bit vague and I fear that growth has slowed down somewhat, though it is still very impressive.

The video below makes for pretty sorry viewing. It is hard not to feel sorry for LCF bondholders who will lose 80% of the cash they thought they were investing in “safe” bonds. But should they be compensated?

I have been a medium-term supporter of Barclays (BARC) shares, noting a couple of months ago that I thought the stock - with all the necessary caveats about the banking space - was cheap at around x0.6 tangible book and that the route to a higher share price may be if it 'pays a bit of respect to the activist on its shareholder books who is talking an interesting game about value creation'. It is the activist angle - and not another Barclays story (a judge discharging the jury in the trial of four former executives over the 2008 controversial global financial crisis Qatari fundraising) - that I turn back to today…