Ventilation products group Volution (FAN) has updated on its year ended 31st July 2018, emphasising “revenue in the 12 month period was £206 million, an 11.3% increase (11.2% on a constant currency basis) compared with the prior year” and “our increasing market and geographical diversity, together with significant investment in new product innovation, gives us confidence for the year ahead”. Do the shares thus merit a higher price than the circa 200p they were also at as long ago as early 2016?...

Leading short seller Marc Cohodes has been banned by the regulator in Alberta, Canada, from trading in shares in Badger Daylighting Ltd and has also been prohibited from disseminating to the public any statements relating to Badger that he knows or reasonably ought to know are misleading or untrue.

The issue of disclosure of holdings and conflicts of interest by those giving investment advice is currently a live topic in the industry. At heart, writing about a stock and disseminating one’s ideas is, I would posit, for many retail investors who have been pushed even further down the pecking order post Mifid 2 and the lock out on their receiving much research, a welcome activity. Information is what feeds stock prices and what prompts investors to act. Without info everybody including the companies are worse off. 

We have news today that Pathfinder Minerals (PFP) has a new Nomad and broker in Strand Hanson and two new directors in Simon Farrell and Scott Richardson Brown. The former becomes non exec chairman replacing disgraced Nick not for the many but for the Trew but, Trew remains on the board. This is not good enough. It is time to drain the swamp. And it can be done at once. Here's why.

Hello, Share Smackers. It won't have escaped your notice that one of the main reasons the Footsie stays high is the rise of mining shares. On most recent days, the big such companies are on the big index's leaderboard. But, as always, some miners do better than others.

After an “Operational Update” from Ascent Resources (AST), despite stating “pleased with the progress of the strategic review”, had seen the shares crashing at the start of this week, they are currently soaring on the back of a “Permitting update”…

In today's podcast I look at fat bastard and those PLCs that employ him, at Amur Minerals (AMC), Mirada (MIRA), FastJet (FJET), Spire Healthcare (SPI) and Card factory (CARD).

Technology group Elektron (EKT) “is pleased to” announce first half year sales from continuing operations +16.9% and that “we now expect our performance for the full year to be ahead of market expectations”. Does this make the shares a buy?...

You always have to watch your biases in the world of investment. There are some shares or sectors that for personal, historical or other exogenous/endogenous reasons you just love or hate. Regular readers will know that Randgold Resources (RRS) has been one of my structural favourites for many a long year, with the stock one of my largest (and most successful) holdings during the final part of my institutional fund management career, contributing to outperformance and the like.

With former flagship Ariadne Capital Limited in administration and Julie "Lingerie on expenses" Meyer facing serious questions about that, Vince Cable's fave entrepreneur has to find a new flagship to stand behind her joke annual conference, this year to be held, to the dismay of local regulators, in Croatia. It would have been Ariadne Capital Group Limited of Malta but what with it facing regulatory probes, having no cash and with the criminal charges against Meyer in Malta that is perhaps not suitable. So Meyer has suggested her new flagship is Viva Capital LLP, formerly the company that booked her speaking fees. Problemo!

Another day and another shocking disclosure from AIM-listed Tern plc (TERN). Yesterday, at 3.10pm, after releasing details of two director buys which were trivial and showed Tuesday’s news of Device Authority’s elevation to “2018 Emerging Star” to be just a ramp (or insider trading by the chairman, take your pick!) we were told that disclosures in relation to two directors of the company had not been entirely truthful: the published directorships of the two had omitted not just the odd one which might have slipped the mind. No, it was TEN!! More to the point, it was ten insolvencies which should have been declared when they were appointed – and a further two which should have been disclosed after appointment.

Sprott is the world's largest resource investor so a) it knows what it is talking about b) it normally talks its own book. I am not greatly surprised to see gold having a rough patch given the irrational exuberance affecting most other asset classes. I am sure that will all change. Anyhow, over to an expert, Shree Kargutkar of Sprott Asset Management who writes:

Regular readers of ShareProphets will know that I am usually very wary of any natural resources company that isn’t actually producing anything, especially if they are valued in the hundreds of millions.

Having IPO’d at 4.5p last week, shares in ‘restaurant yield management platform’ company BigDish (DISH) yesterday - on the back of a “BigDish UK Growth Strategy” announcement - closed up at 5.375p; Good news as this was a UK Investor Show Dragon's Den pick from myself…

Hello, Share Seekers. Having just filled my tank at huge cost, I rather think that the BP (BP.) balance sheet is having a jolly old time. The price of Brent Crude has been dithering lately, due to a surfeit of the black stuff in America. And yet the price at the pumps has soared.

In this podcast I cover Tesla (TSLA) which is curiouser and curiouser, Optibiotix (OPTI) and the parasitic vampire that is ADVFN (AFN), Great Western Mining (GWMO), Toople (TOOP), Angus Energy (ANGS), the Brockham Well, UK Oil & Gas (UKOG) anmd its latest despicable smear c/o yellow journalists at The Daily Mail and cheered on by the vermin paid share rampers of LSE Share Talk

JD Wetherspoon (JDW) led by its founder, our great hero, Tim Martin, has introduced some new Brexit beer mats at its pubs. Yet another reason to pop along today for a pint as you can see below...

Hill & Smith (HILS) has announced results for the first half of 2018 – and having updated on 17th May, “...project delays and the weather-impacted start to the year in the UK... Since mid-March, the group has experienced improved order intake across its UK road and utilities businesses while continuing to record strong performances in both the US and French operations. The board reconfirms that its expectations for the full year remain unchanged”, the shares are currently circa 20% lower on the day at around 1200p…

Perhaps my Gaelic is not quite up to scratch and I am willing to stand corrected by the founder and chairman of Conroy Gold & Natural Resources (CGNR) but I am trying to say in the language of "the old country" that he is talking bollocks in today's news release.

I first warned on shares in InnovaDerma (IDP) in January as they fell towards 230p. Less than two months later it was a profit warning, though the shares are currently bouncing more than 25% higher today, towards 140p – a market cap of circa £20 million, on the back of an “Appointment of CEO and Roots to be ranged in Tesco” announcement…