Morning Note – 31 January 2023

Tissue Regenix - Initiation of coverage – positive FY 22 trading update

Tissue Regenix is a commercial-stage regenerative medicine business with a broad range of products targeting large addressable markets in orthopaedics/sports medicine, biosurgery and dental. Its differentiated product portfolio is underpinned by two proprietary processing technologies (BioRinse® and dCELL®) that deal with the repair or replacement of bone and soft tissue (e.g. skin, tendons). Its last trading update was positive, indicating 24% (26% CER) revenue growth in 2022 and a move into EB

Hardman & Co Monthly: January 2023

Feature article: Hardman & Co Healthcare Index - Review of 2022 The main function of the HHI is to monitor the performance, and to highlight the attractiveness, of life sciences investments over the long term, and to try to identify those stocks that have disruptive technologies that consistently allow them to outperform both the index and the markets. Many of the 53 constituents of the index are high-risk, still being in the development stage, with micro-capitalisations and a long way from sal

Hybridan Small Cap Feast 22/11/22

Dish of the day Joiners: No joiners today. Leavers: No leavers today. What’s cooking in the IPO kitchen?** Kistos Holdings plc, intends to join AIM. The Company was incorporated to act as a new holding company for the group companies 0f Kistos plc (KIST), a holding company with the objective of creating value for its investors through the acquisition and management of companies or businesses in the energy sector. Anticipated Market Cap £327m. Expected 22 Dec 2022. AT85 Global Mid-Market Infrastr

The Hardman & Co Monthly: November 2022

Feature article: A different kind of beat: Boyzone, 1996 Quoted company engagement with retail investors – a new world This month's feature article has been written in collaboration with The Quoted Companies Alliance. Introduction: Retail investors used to be the second-class citizens of the stock market. The bulk of their money was held in funds or pension schemes where a professional took all the decisions and where they owned only a tiny part of the equity market directly. They also tended

The Hardman & Co Monthly: October 2022

Feature article: A glass half-empty view of markets - The 20s harder than the last decade This month’s feature article is written by Steve Clapham, who gives his view on the outlook for markets. He sets out one side of the current debate in markets. Steve is admirably experienced to express an opinion. Steve is the founder of Behind the Balance Sheet, an investor training consultancy. He qualified as a chartered accountant before moving into investment banking as an analyst in the 1980s. In

Tissue Regenix (TRX): Operating leverage

Tissue Regenix (TRX) is focused on the development and commercialisation of two proprietary processing technologies for the repair of soft tissue (dCELL) and bone (BioRinse). It has a broad portfolio of regenerative medicine products for the biosurgery, orthopaedics and dental markets. 1H’22 results provided further evidence of the benefits of TRX’s strategic activities over the past two years, with the combination of sales growth and operating efficiencies driving the company rapidly towards EB

Hybridan Small Cap Feast 07/09/22

Dish of the day Joiners: No joiners today. Leavers: Stanley Gibbons Group has left AIM. What’s cooking in the IPO kitchen?** Critical Metals plc, a company established to acquire mining opportunities in the critical and strategic metals sector, is to be re-admitted onto the Main Market under the ticker “CRTM”, following the proposed acquisition of a 57% interest in Madini Occidental Limited, which holds an indirect 70% interest in the Molulu copper/cobalt project located in the Democratic Republ

The Hardman & Co Monthly: September 2022

Feature article: Macro issues dominate investor sentiment - Some basics for investors The big topics in the investment world at the moment seem to be macroeconomic. With that in mind, we thought it would be useful to revisit some of the basics of the terms being used in the current environment, and to remind investors of the things to look out for (indeed, many younger investors may not have come across some of these influences in their investing lifetime): • Recession does not affect

The Hardman & Co Monthly: August 2022

Feature article: Utility regulation – Changes afoot - Patching up a tainted model While the gas supply crisis – and its price implications – have dominated the UK price regulated sectors in recent months, other issues have arisen that have seriously tainted the price regulation system itself. Indeed, it is fair to ask whether it is ‘’fit for purpose’’. Back in 1984, price regulation, via an unsophisticated RPI-x formula, was introduced to prevent the privatised British Telecom (BT) from abusin

Hardman & Co Research: Tissue Regenix (TRX): Strong 1H’22 sales suggest upside potential

Tissue Regenix (TRX) is focused on the development and commercialisation of two proprietary processing technologies for the repair of soft tissue (dCELL) and bone (BioRinse). It has a broad portfolio of commercial regenerative medicine products for the biosurgery, orthopaedics and dental markets. Early benefits of TRX’s strategic activities over the past two years were evident in the 2021 results and, in a trading update to the market, the company has indicated that the strong sales performance

Hardman & Co Monthly: July 2022

Feature article: Punching above their weight? The contribution of small- and mid-cap quoted companies to markets, employment and tax revenues Back in May 2019, Hardman & Co and the Quoted Companies Alliance jointly published a paper looking at the importance of small and mid-size quoted companies (SMQCs) to the markets, and their contribution to tax revenues and employment in the UK. This is a poorly researched area, and that paper helped frame the debate; it has been quoted from by bodies such

Hardman & Co Monthly: June 2021

In terms of environmental policy, the quest to cut carbon emissions dramatically and to achieve net zero remains high on the political agenda, although the war in Ukraine – and specifically the issue of gas supplies – may weaken these commitments. In any event, the environmental performance of China and the US – responsible, between them, for around one half of global emissions – will be key. In Asia, where ca.85% of energy consumption is currently being met by fossil fuels – there are ca.4.6b

The Hardman & Co Monthly: May 2022

Feature article: Latest ONS survey: steady as she goes…and ignore retail investors at your peril The ONS (Office for National Statistics) has been charting the beneficial ownership of UK-quoted companies periodically since the early 1960s. The latest paper was published in March 2022, and considers the data for December 2020. At December 2020, “Rest of the World” investors owned 56.3% of the market, a further growth since the last survey, while UK institutions’ ownership edged up to 31.6%.

Hybridan Small Cap Feast 28/04/22

Joiners: No joiners today. Leavers: No leavers today. What’s cooking in the IPO kitchen? Altona Rare Earths, the AQSE listed mining exploration company focused on the evaluation, acquisition and development of Rare Earth Elements mining projects in Africa, intends to join the Main Market. Admission to trading of the Company's Ordinary Shares on the AQSE Growth Market will be cancelled simultaneously with Admission. It is also proposed that on Admission, the Company will change its EPIC from AQSE

Core ahead of expectations, growth initiatives progressing but more slowly

EKF has issued an FY22 trading update, with the established Point-of-Care and Central Lab segments growing strongly and ahead of expectations, but growth initiatives coming through slower than forecast. CEO Mike Salter has stepped down, but will remain with the group to focus on delivery of the latter, with Julian Baines returning temporarily as Exec Chair whilst a new permanent CEO is recruited. We pare back our growth expectations in FY23, with additional cost saving measures underway to prote

Positive full year update highlights upside risk

VLG has reported a positive year end update after a strong Q4 performance, particularly across its Customer Brands division. The team at Biokosmes delivered an exceptional year, helping to protect key customers against the ongoing supply chain difficulties. This performance puts VLG on track to at least deliver FY profit expectations, and we have upgraded FY22 EPS by 5.5%. While we make no changes to FY23 forecasts at this stage, on balance we see risk to the upside. On just 5.0x EV/EBITDA, and

Kromek - Interim results – strong revenue growth

Kromek reported interim results with revenues up 44% to £6.8m, an EBITDA loss of £2.7m and period-end cash of £1.0m. A record order book and good visibility over our FY 2023 revenue forecast of £18m (c.91% of which 84% is already contracted or shipped) should still deliver a positive EBITDA in H2, but given inflationary cost pressures and a negative FX impact on translated US costs, it is unlikely to offset the H1 loss as previously anticipated. We reduce FY 2023 EBITDA and PBT by £2.4m and £2.8

Hybridan Small Cap Feast - 25 Jan 23

25 January 2023 @HybridanLLP Status of this Note and Disclaimer This document has been issued to you by Hybridan LLP for information purposes only and should not be construed in any circumstances as an offer to sell or solicitation of any offer to buy any security or other financial instrument, nor shall it, or the fact of its distribution, form the basis of, or be relied upon in connection with, any contract relating to such action. This document has no regard for the specific investment object

Q4 beat + strong guidance

Despite some moderation, Q4 sales crossed expectations as healthy growth in Vaccines and HIV was overshadowed by declining sales of COVID-19 solutions. While 2023 is guided to be strong, COVID-19-related sales are expected to continue declining. Even as Vaccines and HIV continue their momentum, GSK needs to find other avenues for growth, preferably in high-potential oncology. Considering the firm’s legacy strengths and hope of an R&D turnaround, given the on-going initiatives, the share price of

Hybridan Small Cap Feast - 17 Jan 23

17 January 2023 @HybridanLLP Status of this Note and Disclaimer This document has been issued to you by Hybridan LLP for information purposes only and should not be construed in any circumstances as an offer to sell or solicitation of any offer to buy any security or other financial instrument, nor shall it, or the fact of its distribution, form the basis of, or be relied upon in connection with, any contract relating to such action. This document has no regard for the specific investment object

Confirming further upgrades post positive update

At the trading update earlier this week, NIOX indicated FY22 EBITDA would be around £7.0m, ~15% ahead of already upgraded expectations, with net cash coming in at £19.4m. This was driven by 15% underlying revenue growth, improved gross margins on mix and ongoing operational efficiencies. We formally update our estimates in this note, increasing our FY22 PBT/EPS forecast by 20% but, prudently, leaving FY23/24 unchanged for now. The outlook remains positive with latent growth potential in the US a

Hybridan Small Cap Feast - 23 Jan 23

23 January 2023 @HybridanLLP Status of this Note and Disclaimer This document has been issued to you by Hybridan LLP for information purposes only and should not be construed in any circumstances as an offer to sell or solicitation of any offer to buy any security or other financial instrument, nor shall it, or the fact of its distribution, form the basis of, or be relied upon in connection with, any contract relating to such action. This document has no regard for the specific investment object

Hybridan Small Cap Feast - 26 Jan 23

26 January 2023 @HybridanLLP Status of this Note and Disclaimer This document has been issued to you by Hybridan LLP for information purposes only and should not be construed in any circumstances as an offer to sell or solicitation of any offer to buy any security or other financial instrument, nor shall it, or the fact of its distribution, form the basis of, or be relied upon in connection with, any contract relating to such action. This document has no regard for the specific investment object

Hybridan Small Cap Feast - 06 Feb 23

06 February 2023 @HybridanLLP Status of this Note and Disclaimer This document has been issued to you by Hybridan LLP for information purposes only and should not be construed in any circumstances as an offer to sell or solicitation of any offer to buy any security or other financial instrument, nor shall it, or the fact of its distribution, form the basis of, or be relied upon in connection with, any contract relating to such action. This document has no regard for the specific investment objec

Hybridan Small Cap Feast - 20 Jan 23

20 January 2023 @HybridanLLP Status of this Note and Disclaimer This document has been issued to you by Hybridan LLP for information purposes only and should not be construed in any circumstances as an offer to sell or solicitation of any offer to buy any security or other financial instrument, nor shall it, or the fact of its distribution, form the basis of, or be relied upon in connection with, any contract relating to such action. This document has no regard for the specific investment object

Hybridan Small Cap Feast - 30 Jan 23

30 January 2023 @HybridanLLP Status of this Note and Disclaimer This document has been issued to you by Hybridan LLP for information purposes only and should not be construed in any circumstances as an offer to sell or solicitation of any offer to buy any security or other financial instrument, nor shall it, or the fact of its distribution, form the basis of, or be relied upon in connection with, any contract relating to such action. This document has no regard for the specific investment object

Hybridan Small Cap Feast - 03 Feb 23

03 February 2023 @HybridanLLP Status of this Note and Disclaimer This document has been issued to you by Hybridan LLP for information purposes only and should not be construed in any circumstances as an offer to sell or solicitation of any offer to buy any security or other financial instrument, nor shall it, or the fact of its distribution, form the basis of, or be relied upon in connection with, any contract relating to such action. This document has no regard for the specific investment objec

In line Q4; opportune time to capitalise the Swiss giant’s sell-off

Q4 sales met expectations, with both Pharmaceuticals and Diagnostics witnessing healthy growth, excluding receding COVID-19 testing tailwinds. In Oncology, newer drugs largely compensated for sustained biosimilar erosion for off-patent drugs. Other areas, including Neuroscience and Haemophilia, also contributed healthily. However, 2023 guidance was weak, because of the declining COVID-19 business contribution. Now all eyes are on recently-approved drugs and late-stage pipeline candidates. Overal

Interims – transition proceeding to plan

Interims show a strong underlying performance with “core established” revenues +11.5% in the period. As previously discussed, the business is in the process of transitioning away from Covid-related work and implementing the growth strategy of the new management team. Initial indications are positive and investment plans are on track, which should set the business up for strong growth in FY23 and beyond. We make no material changes to forecasts and continue to see substantial potential upside on