Majestic is the pick of Aim

The Aim Index has generally remained depressed of late, having slipped 3 per cent to 590.9, though spirits were raised on 17 October when the junior market's practitioners gathered in London for the Aim Awards. But, while comedian David Baddiel left with his tail between his legs after being booed off stage, Majestic Wine was in finer spirits, walking off with the Aim Company of the Year award.

Joining Majestic on the podium were Synergy Healthcare – Best Newcomer of the Year – and Mears' Bob Holt, the winner of Aim Entrepreneur of the Year. Alas, following a night of jollity and excess, many attendees were apparently unaware of much that went on.

Bizspace makes hay

Results have become rare since the end of September, when a slew of companies picked the last possible date to release final and interim figures. In among these, Growth Company Investor's publisher, Vitesse Media, reported solid-looking interims, at a time when the rest of the media sector is reeling from profit-warnings and debt. The company lost £50,000 on revenues up 17 per cent to £895,000, leaving £446,000 of cash. The shares remained unaltered at 14p.

Meanwhile, small business workspace centre operator Bizspace marched up from 19p to 23p on interim pre-tax profits of £568,000, up 148 per cent. Travel promotions business Landround also attracted attention, climbing 37 per cent to 128.5p after a trading statement surprisingly said results for the year to September were 'comfortably to exceed market expectations'.

A few mining firms were doing well, notably Chinese zinc and gold hopeful Griffin Mining, which announced 'spectacular' results from its drilling programme at the Caijiaying deposit, confirming that it is likely to be 'much larger than previously estimated'. Griffin's shares moved ahead 62 per cent to 5.25p, while Petra Diamonds gained 9 per cent to 30p as it sounded optimistic about prospects for developing its long-dormant Angolan licences.

Jacques goes after William Baird

It was another busy month on the corporate front, with women's fashion designer and retailer Jacques Vert's one-for-one share bid for fully-listed competitor William Baird among the headline-grabbers. At 15p, Vert's shares remain 3p short of their 12-month high.

Meanwhile, former high-flyers Gameplay and Comprehensive Business Services are set to depart the market, as their shareholders agreed to buy-outs. Gameplay received a 1p-a-share bid from the Line Trust Corporation, while CBS shareholders voted in favour of a 20p per share bid from chief executive Derrick Collin.

Takeover speculation has also focused on Aim-oriented investment bank and fund management group Seymour Pierce. Its shares crashed and then bounced back to 4.75p after the company warned of significant losses and chief executive John Mackay resigned, to be replaced by chairman Keith Harris.

Football and other footfalls

Nationwide League football club Leicester City and Watford Leisure saw the financial errors of the past few years come home to roost. The former was put into administration, despite desperate attempts to renegotiate player wages and raise more cash. Watford successfully negotiated a 12 per cent pay cut, but also launched a bid to raise £9.5 million, £6.3 million of it already secured. As an indication of how bad the situation is at Leicester, construction group Birse immediately announced a bad debt provision for the building of the club's new stadium.

Also in administration is pub group Old Monk, after a fire-sale of some of its assets failed to satisfy its bankers. Gerry Martin, brother of JD Wetherspoon's anti-euro campaigner Tim, ran the company before it admitted defeat. Sports Café operator Coliseum is believed to be in the running to buy at least some Springbok venues from the administrators.

Back on the trail of woe, shares in Monotub Industries, the ill-fated developer of the Titan washing machine, fell a further 29 per cent to 3.75p after the firm confirmed it had failed to secure a manufacturing and distribution partner.

Bullish predictions

On 19 November 'agro-technology' company Genus, itself shortlisted for Aim Company of the Year, will unveil its figures for the first half to September. Last year the company improved profits 46 per cent to £5.7 million, and house broker Teather & Greenwood reckons pre-tax profits will rise to £8.6 million this year, with earnings of 16.9p a share. At 166.5p, that puts the group on a prospective p/e ratio of 9.9.