Mark Watson-Mitchell – 17.04.2026   At the start of last month, we featured the shares of Metro Bank (LON:MTRO)  ahead of the reshaped banking group announcing its 2025 Finals. The group’s shares were then trading at 122p, earlier this week they touched 148p, before closing at 141.60p last night. Yesterday the £953m-capitalised company sent out its 2025 Report and Accounts, with its AGM to be held on Tuesday, 2 nd  June. 2025 Final Results On Wednesday 4 th  March, the group

Mark Watson-Mitchell - 15.04.2026   This morning the near £214m-capitalised ASA International (LON:ASAI)  has announced its Final Results for the year to end-December 2025 – they were excellent. The group, which has a strong commitment to financial inclusion and socioeconomic progress, is one of the world's largest international microfinance institutions, providing small, socially responsible loans to low-income entrepreneurs, most of whom are women, across Asia and Africa.

Mark Watson-Mitchell - 14.04.2026   Capitalised at just £128m, Quartix Technologies (LON:QTX) is one of Europe's leading suppliers of subscription-based vehicle tracking systems, analytical software and services. It recently released a very good set of results for last year, and I am looking forward to the group’s pre-AGM Trading Update, due on Wednesday, 22 nd  April, which could well help to push the group’s shares, now 265p after a 9% rise yesterday, back up towards the

Mark Watson-Mitchell - 13.04.2026   This coming Wednesday, 15 th  April, will see the £740m-capitalised Hunting (LON:HTG) hold its AGM to cover its trading year to end-December 2025. It is also expected to issue a pre-AGM Trading Update, with the possibility of comment on the progress of potential new contract orders. This morning, against a lower market, the group’s shares have risen 16.50p to 506p – possibly in anticipation of some bullish comments. The Business Established

Mark Watson-Mitchell - 13.04.2026 This morning the £169m capitalised Concurrent Technologies (LON:CNC) reported its 2025 results, showing a better-than-expected profits advance, up 25% on a 14% increase in sales. The Colchester-based group is a designer and manufacturer of leading-edge computer products, systems, and mission-critical solutions used in high-performance markets by some of the world's major OEMs. Concurrent reported a strong financial year with revenue increasin

Mark Watson-Mitchell - 13.04.2026   The ten companies selected were as follows:   AO World (LON:AO.)  @ 85p now 95.50p +12.35% Ashtead Technology Holdings (LON:AT.)  @ 390p now 472.60p +21.18% Chemring Group (LON:CHG)  @ 485p now 547p +12.78% Costain Group (LON:COST)  @ 177p now 197.60p +11.64% Currys (LON:CURY)  @ 128p now 134.10p +4.77% Filtronic (LON:FTC)  @ 145p now 194p +33.79% James Fisher & Sons (LON:FSJ)  @ 470p now 481p +2.34% Ramsdens Holdings (LON:RFX)  @ 340p now

Mark Watson-Mitchell – 10.04.2026   This morning AO World (LON:AO.)  has announced its Full Year Post-Close Trading Update for its year to end-March, which should see the group’s shares recovering from the current 89p. The £495m-capitalised electricals retail group, which two weeks ago completed its share buyback programme, taking some 9.7m shares into treasury, has issued a very positive Update. Double-digit revenue growth and a 15% profit growth is on the cards for the grou

Mark Watson-Mitchell - 09.04.2026   Next Monday, 13 th  April, Concurrent Technologies (LON:CNC)  will release its Final Results to end-December 2025, they will be good and show real progress going forward. The £167m-capitalised group is a designer and manufacturer of leading-edge computer products, systems, and mission-critical solutions used in high-performance markets by some of the world's major OEMs, At the end of February, the group’s shares were trading at a 278p High,

Mark Watson-Mitchell - 09.04.2026 This morning Van Elle Holdings (LON:VANL) announced that it has received a takeover approach from SCABAG, worth 52.3p a share in cash and valuing the group at £58.8m. The bid has been accepted by the Van Elle Board, with 45.0% of the shares, as well as from institutional holders with 26.1% of the group's equity. The Business Van Elle Holdings, which was formed in 1984 and listed on AIM in 2016, provides a wide range of ground engineerin

Mark Watson-Mitchell - 08.04.2026 Following on from my article yesterday on DF Capital (LON:DFCH) , the finance group has today issued a Trading Update for its First Quarter to end-March this year. The £96m-capitalised group is based upon a specialist bank that provides financial solutions that support manufacturers, dealers and distributors across the UK. Its Update described that its momentum in lending continued with strong portfolio quality. The news created a forward

Mark Watson-Mitchell – 07.04.2026   This morning Volex (LON:VLX)  confirmed that it is going to move its listing from AIM to the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange, targeting admission before Tuesday, 4 th August, which could make it eligible for the FTSE 250 Index. Concurrently, the near £900m-capitalised company has launched a share buyback program to return up to £40m to shareholders. The group will also host a Capital Markets Event on Wednesday, 22 nd  April to pre

Mark Watson-Mitchell - 07.04.2026   A fortnight ago, the £91.1m-capitalised DF Capital (LON:DFCH)  declared a very good set of Final figures for the finance group’s 2025 trading year. At the end of January this year, this group’s shares were trading at a High of 68p, more than double the Low of 32p scored towards the end of April a year ago. After the results, which were a very good read, the shares have traded within the 60p to 52.50p range. Now at 55.50p, trading on just 6

Mark Watson-Mitchell - 01.04.2026   The ten companies selected were as follows:   AO World (LON:AO.)  @ 85p - now 86.50p +1.76% Ashtead Technology Holdings (LON:AT.)  @ 390p now 428.50p +9.87% Chemring Group (LON:CHG)  @ 485p now 546p +12.58% Costain Group (LON:COST)  @ 177p now 189.80p +7.23% Currys (LON:CURY)  @ 128p now 127.70p -0.23% Filtronic (LON:FTC)  @ 145p now 201p +38.62% James Fisher & Sons (LON:FSJ)  @ 470p now 462p -1.70% Ramsdens Holdings (LON:RFX)  @ 340p now 3

Mark Watson-Mitchell - 01.04.2026   Last Thursday we highlighted the shares of AG Barr (LON:BAG) , the Scots-based soft drinks maker famous for its IRN-BRU brand. That was ahead of yesterday’s Finals for the year to end-January. The then £697m-capitalised group’s shares were trading at a lowly 628p. They had previously been up to 715.32p in the last month or so, before falling back to a recent Low of 608p, scored early in March. After some profit-taking the shares closed the

Mark Watson-Mitchell – 01.04.2026     Following on from the announcement last Thursday, 26 th March, when Filtronic (LON:FTC) reported that it had secured an $8.0m (£6.0m) contract with a US company, the group has announced further contract news. Last week’s contract is to develop, manufacture, and qualify high-performance system-level products, specifically amplifiers utilising proprietary GaN and MMIC technology for satellite communications. That contract, which started in

Mark Watson-Mitchell – 31.03.2026     Last Thursday 26 th  March, there was something of a shock announcement from Currys (LON:CURY). The £1.2bn capitalised electricals retailer declared that Group Chief Executive Alex Baldock will step down after eight years to pursue a new external opportunity, with the board initiating a search for his successor. The company confirmed that trading remains in line with expectations, and it continues to anticipate Group adjusted profit befor

Mark Watson-Mitchell - 31.03.2026 This morning BRCK Group (LON:BRCK) announced that it has received an unsolicited, non-binding approach from Atlas Holdings LLC to acquire the entire issued share capital of BRCK. Atlas initially proposed an indicative offer price of 65p per share in cash, which the BRCK board unanimously rejected on 23rd March, as it fundamentally undervalued the company. BRCK has agreed to provide limited further information to Atlas to explore a potenti

Mark Watson-Mitchell - 27.03.2026 We have no date yet for CML Microsystems (LON:CML) announcing its Trading Update for its year to end-March, however, it could well be within days. The Maldon-based company develops mixed-signal, RF and microwave semiconductors for global communications markets. The group's shares are currently trading at around the 230p level, which capitalises the business, with some £10m in cash, at just £38.2m, which could well prove to be a bargain buying

Mark Watson-Mitchell - 26.03.2026   Since early February, when the multi-beverage business A.G. Barr (LON:BAG)  announced its Full Year Trading Update, this group’s shares have been up to 715.32p and back down to a recent low of 608p, which was scored last Monday 23 rd  March. Now, ahead of the IRN-BRU brand-owning group reporting its Finals to end-January this year, due next Tuesday morning, it could well prove to be opportune to take a position, especially with the shares

Mark Watson-Mitchell - 26.03.2026   Last Monday morning, 23 rd  March, I was reminded by a reader that six years ago, on Tuesday 24 th  March 2020, I published a Covid-19 Market Recovery Portfolio  of ten stocks – it scored well, with a 48.35% gain in less than three months, triple the performance of the FTSE100 in the same period. By 8.30am on Monday, the FTSE100 stood at 9750, within three hours it was down another 33 points to 9717. However, my choices were made within min