Real Affinity for Langbar

Beleaguered marketing services outfit Real Affinity (RAF) was beset by speculators this week betting on a possible takeover.

Shares in the company shot up nearly 150 per cent to 0.95p on Thursday, before AIM-quoted investment concern Langbar International (LGB) said it was in bid talks. This morning Langbar’s recommended all-share offer of 0.39p sent Real Affinity – which also announced a £2.03 million loss for the year to March – back down to 0.4p.

Former Baker Tilly corporate financier Stuart Pearson chairs both companies. Most of his time is spent trying to validate the current valuation of Langbar’s assets, principally cash deposits in Brazil’s central bank.

The group, previously called Crown Corporation, also published interim figures this morning, showing a £14.8 million pre-tax profit. The figures confirmed that net assets stood at £357 million at the end of June, or 205p a share. Despite this the shares dropped 9p to 69p, a discount of 66 per cent to net assets.

Pearson has arranged to use $200 million of the funds to develop a property venture in Portugal and has transferred the remaining $300 million from Brazil to Holland.

TripleArc plummets

Bottom of the pile this week were shares in printing services provider TripleArc (TPA), down 54 per cent to 3.25p. In April they were over 20p. This happened as 2004 profits were restated downwards by £1 million after new finance director Richard Hodgson uncovered a considerable accounting mistake. Interims to June showed a £2.4 million loss against last time’s £674,000 pre-tax profit.

At the other end of the scale was Sheffield United (SUT). The football club, seven points clear at the top of the Championship, also headed AIM’s leader board this week, scoring a 90 per cent price rise to 20p.

Computer games developer Bits Corp (BIT) jumped 26 per cent to 7.38p even though results for the year to March saw pre-tax profits slip 32 per cent to £72,000 on turnover flat at £1.9 million. Investors applauded the acquisition of licenses for games including one based on the Keanu Reeves film ‘Constantine’.

Overall the FTSE 100 rose 23.4 points to 5476.4 but the AIM Index fell 2.9 points to 1094.2.

BioProjects expands remit

BioProjects (BIP) clipped up 31 per cent to 4.25p after extending its investment remit to sectors other than biotechnology. The group, led by legendary investor Jim Slater, will change its name to Original Investments.

Diagnostic products developer Akers Bioscience (AKR) expects second half sales ‘to significantly exceed’ first half revenues after these rose 22 per cent to $1.04 million in the six months to June. The anticipated sales growth will see the group break even by the end of the year and make a profit in 2006. The shares ended the week up six per cent at 84p.

Bombed-out biotech hopeful ReGen Therapeutics (RGT) reported new studies show its prospective Alzheimer’s treatment lengthens the life of mouse cells. Nevertheless shares in ReGen, floated five years ago at 28p, fell ten per cent to 1.12p.

Looking forward

Two Toronto Ventures Exchange-quoted mining plays are planning AIM flotations.

Copper explorer Taseko Mines, which claims one billion ounces of copper at its Gibraltar mine, is headed by president and chief executive Russell Hallbauer, a veteran of the Teck Cominco mining group. Fundraising is yet to be decided.

And gold miner Absolut Resources, with an option to earn 75 per cent of AIM-quoted Monterrico Metals' Pico Machay gold project in Peru, may link up with a private group and raise £1 million.