Small caps round-up: Caledonia Mining, Hardy Underwriting, Tangent Comms ...

12th Nov 2010 15:34

Caledonia Mining made a third quarter net profit of C$1.64m, up from C$826,000 a year ago, on revenue up 28% to C$6.33m.It sold 4,934 ounces of gold at an average sale price of US$1,241 per ounce and a cash cost of US$651 per ounce. The Blanket mine ramped up production by 45% as the first standby generator, installed late June, allowed underground operations to continue during interruptions to the normal electricity supply.Specialist insurer and reinsurer Hardy Underwriting expects gross written premium of about £300m in 2010, up from £242m last year, following steady growth to £256.3m in the period to 1 October. "Against the background of a generally flat market, Hardy has continued its rigorous focus on underwriting profitability and has been able to underwrite risks at good technical prices, despite a marginal reduction in renewal rates over the year," it said.Marketing firm Tangent Communications is at a six-month high after interim revenue jumped 39% to £11.82m and underlying operating profit more than doubled to £0.86m. "The second half has begun well with the seasonally lower revenues in the second half to be expected," boss Timothy Green said. Globus Maritime, which intends to delist from AIM on November 25 if it can find a suitable North American exchange on which to list its shares, saw time charter revenue in the third quarter slump to $8.8m from $15.0m the year before.Adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation halved to $5.57m from $11.14m. The global provider of seaborne transportation services for dry bulk cargoes said its cash balances at the end of September exceeded $26.7m while total outstanding debt was $101.7mShareholders in Indian wind farm operator Indian Energy received a blow after management said revenue and outturn for the current year will be below expectations. A two month delay in commissioning the Theni project in Tamil Nadu means output for the current financial year will be below budget, while output from the existing Gadag project in Karnataka was materially affected by poor winds during the monsoon months.Clinical software systems specialist Cbay posted sharply higher earnings in the third quarter as acquisition Spheris contributed for the first time, though this was partially offset by a decrease in legacy maintenance service revenues and lower average pricing realized for transcription services.Turnover in the nine months to September rose by $35.2m to $317m, compared with $281.8m this time last year. Net income was $6.4m compared with a net loss $0.2m. For the last three months, net revenues increased by 25% to $116.4m, with underlying profits up 70.1% to $25.3m. Indian film maker Eros lifted interim profits by a third to $27.9m, on turnover up by 20.3% to $68m. "With a firmed slate of film releases over the next two years, revenue visibility, a strong content library and initiatives to take the global brand of Indian films and of Eros further, the company's outlook is now very positive and it looks forward to the next three to five years with excitement," it added. Ukrainian farmer Landkom winter-planted a total of 28,856 hectares across three regions, up 35% from 2009. "This successful winter planting campaign has put us in good stead to achieve our target of planting higher acreage for harvest in 2011," it said. "Well managed cash flow allows us to take advantage of the rising trend in commodity prices. We have currently stored the majority of our wheat, sunflower, soybean and maize and will look to secure the best possible prices for them," it added.Recruiter Prime People's net fee income increased by 30% to £3.95m (2009: £3.05m) in the half-year to September. Permanent NFI increased by 50% to £3.22m (2009: £2.14m). The group swung to a profit before tax of £0.41m (2009: loss of £0.16m), while an interim dividend of 1.75p per share is proposed."Our prospects for the second half are good and I am looking forward to implementing our plans for growing our established overseas offices as well as further developing our new revenue lines," managing director Peter Moore said.Pawnbroker Albemarle & Bond is trading in line with management expectations in the first four months of the year, with continued strong demand for small loans at competitive rates. The group is on track to achieve its target of opening 25 new stores, 16 of which will open in the first half. Its core pawnbroking business is currently achieving double digit like for like growth year on year in the pledge book, driven by higher loan sizes. Its gold buying division is performing well while the gold jewellery market "remains very challenging".Retinal imaging company Optos has made a conditional offer for Australian ophthalmic device company Opto Global for up to $14.75m, comprising an initial $10.75m in cash plus $1m in new ordinary shares of Optos, with a contingent cash consideration of up to $3m "based on the achievement of certain revenue-related milestones" for the year after the completion of the offer. "This acquisition brings a number of complementary products which we can market through our sales channel in our core US and EU markets", said Optos CEO Roy Davis. "In addition, through this deal we expand our geographic reach into new markets".Shares in Australian nickel miner Regency Mines rose 16% Friday afternoon after the company purchased a 10.04% stake in British coal group Oracle Coalfields for just over £1m. Regency will subscribe for 18.5m new Oracle shares at a price of 5.5p each, with the £1.02m payable in cash. Oracle is to seek a listing on AIM in the first half of 2011. Oracle has also agreed that, at the time of admission, Regency will be given the right to subscribe for further shares to increase its stake to 20%.