Smaller companies: Wednesday Close
UK smaller companies ended the session sharply lower as concerns surrounding global interest rates hit equities hard.
Access Intelligence closed lower following disappointing full year results, while Appian Technology rose following news of a contract win.
By the close, the FTSE Small Cap index was 33.6 points lower at 3,549.9, while the FTSE 100 ended 44.5 points lower at 5,812.9.
Among shares in focus today, Access Intelligence fell 1.375p to 7.325p following full-year losses. The IT based information support and services company reported a pre-tax loss of £100,000 in the year ended 30 November 2005, compared with a loss of £380,000, on sales nearly quadrupled at £1.94m.
Elsewhere, a swing to full-year losses extracted 2p from 1st Dental Laboratories, at 17½p, while widening half-yearly losses and a warning that full-year sales will be 'well below' market expectations saw Vividas Group slip 5p to 56p.
Another faller was Highway Insurance Holdings off 3p to 80p after posting a 29% jump in full-year profit but warning that trading conditions remain 'challenging' and saying its finance director has resigned.
Highway also said it aims to develop distribution in its broking unit and closer align the underwriting business.
On the upside, Appian Technology ticked up 1p to 9p after the AIM-traded provider of Automatic Number Plate Recognition systems and traffic management products and solutions won a £626,000 order to equip the first phase of a number of UK ports with its Talon ANPR technology.
Meanwhile, Galleon Holdings gained 1½p to 9½p as the intellectual property owner and developer in the children's entertainment sector revealed that its Croco Worldwide Sourcing unit won a $270,000 contract for the supply of 14m soccer-based premium products for an overseas food manufacturer.
Stilo International rose 0.125 up at 2p, after the company disclosed narrowing full-year losses and said it is moving closer to annual profitability.
The specialist content engineering software and services group turned in pre-tax losses of £587,000, compared with a loss of £1.3m a year earlier.
A drilling update lifted African Diamonds 12p to 129p. The firm said grades from its AK6 diamond discovery near Orapa Botswana are 'way above' expectations.
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Marchpole ticked up 0½p to 20p after two directors of the designer and manufacturer of clothing and accessories for major brands snapped up a total of 300,000 shares at a price of 17½p a piece.
Buyers came for Griffin Mining, 5¾p better at 65½p, after an upbeat drilling report.
Results from its Caijiaying zinc-gold mine show that there is an emerging gold resource within a larger zone of zinc mineralization, as was foreshadowed in the pre-mining studies.
On the bid front, UK bus company Dunn-Line edged up 0.375p to 4¼p after Veolia Environnement, the French utility group, made an agreed £9.7m, or 4p a share, takeover.
Traders found an appetite for Restaurant Group closing 18¼p higher at 178½p, as the company, which operates branded restaurants predominantly in leisure locations and airports, revealed a 21% increase in adjusted full-year pre-tax profits and cranked up the payout by 13%.
The current year has also started well, with like-for-like sales in the first nine weeks up 4%.
Following the numbers, Altium Securities analyst Greg Feehely shifted his stance on the stock to 'buy' from 'add' and stepped up his price target to 185p. He envisages increasing his 2006 pre-tax estimate to at least 32m from a previous £28.3m.
Elsewhere, solid progress helped Victoria Oil & Gas close 5½p better at 254p, as the the oil and gas development company announced the first oil production from its wholly owned Kemerkol project in Kazakhstan.
Finally, and on the new issue front, shares in Cohort were marked up to 142p from a placing price of 123p. The company has been established to capitalise on opportunities in the defence technical services market.
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