Gary Newman was – quite rightly – never a fan of AIM-listed oiler Block Energy (BLOE) – despite its apparently large fan-base on the Bulletin Boards. Now, it seems as though some shareholders – apparently representing around 20% of the stock – have had enough. I gather they want to know what is going on, but can’t seem to get management to engage. Given the apparent shambles, it is hardly surprising.

Aided and abetted by Good Germans such as the Sith Lord Zak Mir as well as active stock manipulation by unscrupulous social media operators, the ramping of con company Supply@ME Capital (SYME) continues. But at the heart of this are the activities of CEO Alessandro Zambini whose activities I exposed at the weekend. This is clear market abuse and I have written to my great fans at the FCA asking for a formal enquiry.

Photonic systems, components and instrumentation for applications in the aerospace & defence, industrial and sciences sectors company Gooch & Housego (GHH) has updated including that its “manufacturing locations in the UK, USA and China are now fully open, thanks to measures that were quickly and efficiently put in place by our site teams, minimising the disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic for our customers whilst keeping our employees safe… Trading levels in June and July reflected the recovery in the company’s manufacturing capacity and some of our larger customers’ manufacturing sites reopening… our order book remains robust”. The shares though are still not much above levels from when I previously wrote on the company in April…

We are still awaiting developments regarding AIM-listed Ariana’s proposed corporate action to bring Ozaltin into its Red Rabbit JV with Proccea along with Ariana’s wholly-owned Salinbas project in Eastern Turkey in return for $30 million, plus whatever Proccea ends up paying. We are told today that Ariana is focussed on finalising this in the coming weeks. While we wait, Ariana has popped up with some stonking drilling results from its Arzu South pit: it seems that there is more gold……

Dealerships company Cambria Automobiles (CAMB) has updated including “results for June and July well ahead of the previous year and management expectations”, but the shares are still around 50p comparing to 70p in February…

Yesterday, both Nigel and myself covered the shocking Asimilar/Dev Clever/Mark Horrocks scandal. It is clear to me that in light of what we discovered on September 1, that on May 13 this year Dev Clever (DEV) issued a statement that was grotesquely misleading and, as such, constitutes clear market abuse. I have thus asked the FCA to launch a formal investigation into what is a scandal.

I have been a bit of a sceptic about the housebuilding sector for a while and got my pay-offs earlier this year. So on a quiet-ish day for regulatory news disclosures, I thought I would see how Barratt Developments (BDEV) was seeing life with the shares still over 30% off highs despite recent market advances. The company noted in its full year to the end of June numbers that by the balance sheet date, all operational sites had reopened. However, you can see the scars of the crisis, with full year completions down just shy of 30% but split (+8.1% in H1 and -58% in H2) and profits down, although there was ‘modest house price inflation’…

The other day, the Sith Lord Zak Mir produced a slavish piece of PR puffery dressed up as journalism suggesting folks buy shares in Supply@MECapital (SYME) at c0.7p – a £250 million valuation. It was vomit inducing and, even by the standards of my semi-literate and utterly innumerate friend, it was utterly moronic.

Hello, Share Riders. A share to avoid in my humble view is Pearson (PSON), the publisher. Some news has just been announced that normally would have invigorated the share price. Yet it made no difference…

Early this year we showed the Shorted AIM shares at the start of 2020. How’s the performance as at the end of August? (those in bold remain from 2019)…

Virtual reality experiences group Immotion (IMMO) is “pleased to report that since our last update on July 29th 2020, trading has continued to be encouraging across the sites that have operated during the summer period”. The shares are though a bit lower, to 4.65p…

Last week, when we learned the final outcome of the previous ramp of Asimilar (ASLR), I noted the collapse of its share price and that it is what happens when you invest in a ramp. Well blow me down, this morning we are off again with an announcement of an acquisition of Intrinsic Capital (Jersey) Limited from Mr Mark Horrocks…

Franchise cakes retailer Cake Box Holdings (CBOX) has updated including “by 1 June 2020, 131 of the 133 stores had reopened, offering a limited menu of products. In the last three months, since the reopening of the estate, trading has been very strong, with like-for-like sales growth of c.14.1% in franchise stores. Online sales continue to grow, up c.74% compared to the previous year three-month period” and a “decision to pay a special dividend of the same amount as the final dividend (3.2p per share) for the year ending 31 March 2020 that was withdrawn on 14 April” – and the shares have currently responded to above 180p, more than 5% higher…

Apparently you can’t travel with SAGA (SAGA) until you are 50 unless you are over 40 and travelling with someone 50+. Well I am going to have to wait a few more years then to have that option for my summer holiday, as I don’t really fancy asking my parents if I can tag along with them. Still, I am sure SAGA would be happy for anyone to buy its shares irrespective of their age…although as they are sitting at approximately one-tenth of their IPO price it would have been a pretty harmful decision irrespective of your age…

The correction in gold and gold equities may or may not have ended, but right now the numbers are giving a very good impression of the former. As I write, gold is hovering around $1990 per ounce and GDX and GDXJ in the UK are up by 2.2% and 3.3% respectively. My bet is we will see $2000 gold again imminently. Whether I am right or not, in the medium term it is irrelevant: the trend is up and as I have suggested before, gold and gold stocks will head higher. What happens then is a matter covered by Jordan Roy-Byrne of TheDailyGold.com and his answer is very exciting…

On the exact occasion of my 7th wedding anniversary, I am off to see my father so there is only a brief bearcast from me. Well it’s quite a long one actually but it is recorded early. I start with Carnival Cruises (CCL), then TrainLine (TRN) and then the stinking nest of vipers that is Asimilar (ASLR), Dev Clever (DEV), All Active Asset Capital (AAA), Mark Horrocks, Chris Akers, Novum and Peterhouse Capital. Hold your noses as you listen.

Early this year we showed the top shorted London-listed shares at the start of 2020. How’s the performance as at the end of August? (those in bold remain from 2019)…

Wood Group (WG.) announced half-year results including “operating profit of $65.6m (June 2019: $138.8m)…considers it prudent not to pay a 2020 interim dividend” but the shares look to be at a depressed valuation and the announcement also included “recent signs of stabilisation… expect good cash generation and a further reduction in net debt in the second half. Well placed for medium term growth as markets recover and the energy transition gathers pace”…

Hello, Share Smashers. I’ve mentioned before a giant Footsie jumbo which began by making wire baskets. Somewhere along the line Martin Sorrell got interested and now the company is said to be the biggest advertising company in the world. It reached this point by using the latest technology to market top businesses. At least that’s what I think it’s all about as the ‘about us’ slot on its website makes little sense to this old thicko. What’s drawn my attention to this giant though is that analysts at Barclays discovered an unusual happenstance…

There are many reasons to dismiss Standard-listed Panther Metals (PALM). For a start, having decided to depart the Nex (now Aquis) lobster-pot, it opted for the somewhat tainted waters of the Standard List, rather than a full listing (which, to be fair, at the time would have been a bit of a joke as its market cap would have been very small). And its Broker is that bastion of the bottom end of AIM, Peterhouse Corporate Finance. My immediate reaction is already to wave a red flag over this investment. But there are some attractions – enough to warrant a small spot in the cellar of the Montana Log-Cabin?