The following stocks are the leading risers and fallers among London Main Market small-caps on Friday.
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SMALL-CAP - WINNERS
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EnQuest PLC, up 6.8% at 22.15 pence, 12-month range 16.90p-37.35p. The stock nudges higher for the second successive day, after sliding 6.9% on Monday and 6.5% on Tuesday as oil prices came under pressure from recession fears. A barrel of Brent fetched $104.26 on Friday morning in London, rising from an overnight low of $103.70. The North Sea benchmark fell below $100 a barrel earlier in the week. EnQuest is a North Sea and Malaysia-focused oil and gas company.
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AO World PLC, up 3.1% at 41.02 pence, 12-month range 38.90p-250.00p. It is somewhat of a positive end to a difficult week for the embattled online electrics retailer, which has lost roughly 40% of its value in the process. The electrical goods had confirmed in a statement on Monday that it was aware that one of the third-party credit insurers which provides credit insurance to some of its suppliers had rebased their cover in May with respect to AO, reflecting post-Covid sales levels. It followed a report in the Sunday Times which stated that Atradius, a credit insurer, cut its credit cover for the online retailer’s suppliers. AO then launched a fundraise on Wednesday at 43p per share, an 8.5% discount to Tuesday’s closing price of 47.0p, and now trades below the fundraise price.
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SMALL-CAP - LOSERS
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Marston’s PLC, down 4.8% at 44.43p, 12-month range 43.00p-94.60p. HSBC cuts the pub firm to ’reduce’ from ’hold’, in a wider bearish broker note which hit other London-listed pub operators. The investment bank also cut Mitchells & Butlers PLC to ’hold’ from ’buy’ and lowered its price target for JD Wetherspoon PLC by 17%. The FTSE 250 constituents were 4.3% and 0.4% lower, respectively.
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