Beyond the Footsie: Weds close
INVESTORS stepped up their buying of smaller company stocks, reflecting the fresh advance on the broader equities market. Dealers cited what the market took as reassuring comments from Alan Greenspan, chairman of the US Federal Reserve, on prospects of economic recovery in the States.
A dearth of corporate news gave small cap punters little else to trade on. The FTSE SmallCap index ended up 8.2 points at 2464.6 - its best level for the day.
Shareholders in Gameplay.com were getting the run around again, the stock bouncing 0.13p to 2p as chief executive Mark Bernstein raised his stake in the cash shell, formerly a failed computer games reseller. Sky New Media Ventures said it had it sold its 5.2% stake to Bernstein at 0.7p a share, lifting his holding to 22.27%.
Investors had been lured in recent sessions on news that Bernstein and former Scoot.com chief executive Robert Bonnier had been stakebuilding. Bernstein bought 4.47m shares last week and Bonnier 1.25m. But the stock plummeted on Tuesday after Bernstein sold 1.13m shares and Bonnier unloaded 550,000. Bernstein has reportedly denied any contact with Bonnier.
Project Telecom took on 8p at 75p after accompanying full-year results with a reassuring trading update, boasting that benefits from last year's buys would kick in this year. Latchways added 27 1/2p at 287 1/2p after the firm said it had won a contract to supply fall arrest systems to Dutch electricity transmission networks.
Software stock Tecteon, formerly Startup Station, added 1/4p to 2 3/4p. The firm said it would float its oil interests on Ofex, and was confident about prospects.
Investors had less luck at CML Microsystems. The firm, which makes semiconductors for the telecoms industry, shed 70p to 212 1/2p after warning that it faced second-half losses. Generics slid 16 1/2p to 67 1/2p after the IT consulting firm plunged £12.73m into the red and scrapped its 2001 dividend. Current conditions remained difficult, it added.
A 70% hike in research and development spending left Oxford Biomedica nursing a £9.5m full-year loss, from £5.4m a year earlier. The stock fell 5p to 32 1.2p.
Smaller companies spotlight
