(Getty Images)
ASX Small Cap Lunchtime Wrap: Who’s wary of some more false hope today?
News
share
It wasn’t quite a direct route from optimism to pessimism this morning, but local markets opened with a much more cautious tone following a brief dose of exuberance yesterday.
Those Tuesday gains followed a strong US lead, after Massachusetts-based biotech Moderna reported promising early trial results form a COVID-19 vaccine.
Admittedly, the results weren’t peer reviewed and Moderna took advantage of a 20 per cent price surge to announce a $US1.25bn (~$1.9bn) share issue.
Just 24 hours later, markets had turned skeptical following a report from health industry website Stat which raised doubts about the strength of Moderna’s results.
Chalk it up as another day in the Age of ‘Rona, where uncertainty around the health outlook is still the order of the day.
Local markets also absorbed some sobering analysis from CBA economists this morning, who forecast that economic contractions in Australia’s two largest states — Victoria and NSW — will last through to to the end of the 2021 financial year.
In light of all that the ASX has been relatively resilient, with the ASX200 opening around 0.5 per cent lower before climbing back towards even into midday trade.
It was a stronger showing from the Small Ords Index, which shrugged off the negative sentiment to climb by more than 1 per cent — on track for its fourth straight day of gains.
SMALL CAP WINNERS
Here are the best performing ASX small cap stocks at 12pm on Wednesday May 20:
Swipe or scroll to reveal the full table. Click headings to sort.
| CODE | COMPANY | PRICE | % CHANGE | MARKET CAP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GTE | Great Western Exploration | 0.002 | 100.00% | $2.5M |
| XST | Xstate Resources Ltd | 0.002 | 50.00% | $1.4M |
| TKL | Traka Resources Ltd | 0.006 | 50.00% | $2.4M |
| ASN | Anson Resources | 0.045 | 50.00% | $28.6M |
| TPD | Talon Petroleum Ltd | 0.002 | 50.00% | $1.8M |
| ALT | Analytica Ltd | 0.003 | 50.00% | $5.3M |
| ROG | Red Sky Energy | 0.002 | 50.00% | $1.6M |
| BAS | Bass Oil Ltd | 0.002 | 50.00% | $5.0M |
| OPL | Opyl | 0.1 | 38.89% | $3.0M |
| REE | Rarex Ltd | 0.033 | 37.50% | $10.3M |
| TMT | Technology Metals Australia | 0.155 | 29.17% | $16.8M |
| AQZ | Alliance Aviation | 2.72 | 26.51% | $342.9M |
| CPT | Cipherpoint | 0.02 | 25.00% | $786K |
| MAY | Melbana Energy | 0.005 | 25.00% | $11.6M |
| TEG | Triangle Energy Global | 0.043 | 26.47% | $15.5M |
| IBX | Imagion Biosystems | 0.027 | 22.73% | $20.6M |
| NWC | New World Resources | 0.012 | 20.00% | $12.8M |
| SLZ | Sultan Resources | 0.155 | 19.23% | $7.6M |
| ROO | Roots Sustainable Agricultural DRC | 0.025 | 19.05% | $3.6M |
| MAN | Mandrake Resources | 0.034 | 17.24% | $8.8M |
Healthcare data company Opyl (ASX:OPL) rose by almost 40 per cent in morning trade, after a commercial update in which it highlighted two new revenue-generating contracts “that will increase company revenues over the next three quarters”.
Opyl said it’s on track to reach cashflow break-even in the June quarter. The company attributed its positive momentum to “the rapid transition to focus on digital channels and data optimisation in healthcare as a result of COVID-19”.
And domestic airline group Alliance Aviation (ASX:AQZ) also performed well, after citing a pickup in demand for its charter flight services (particularly from its FIFO clients) due to the ongoing absence of commercial flights during the pandemic.
SMALL CAP LOSERS
Here are the worst performing ASX small cap stocks at 12pm on Wednesday May 20:
Swipe or scroll to reveal the full table. Click headings to sort.
| CODE | COMPANY | PRICE | % CHANGE | MARKET CAP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| XPE | XPED | 0.001 | -50.00% | $3.5M |
| PCL | Pancontinental Oil&Gas | 0.001 | -33.33% | $8.1M |
| ICG | Inca Minerals Ltd | 0.001 | -33.33% | $4.1M |
| CAG | Cape Range | 0.36 | -29.41% | $34.2M |
| PGY | Pilot Energy | 0.015 | -25.00% | $1.2M |
| OAR | Oakdale Resources Ltd | 0.002 | -20.00% | $1.4M |
| ATX | Amplia Therapeutics | 0.125 | -19.35% | $8.3M |
| GBR | Great Boulder Resources Ltd | 0.029 | -17.14% | $3.9M |
| EMP | Emperor Energy | 0.029 | -17.14% | $2.4M |
| BRV | Big River Gold | 0.026 | -16.13% | $34.3M |
| TZ | TZ | 0.034 | -15.00% | $3.1M |
| CHK | Cohiba Minerals Ltd | 0.006 | -14.29% | $4.0M |
| GTG | Genetic Technologies Ltd | 0.006 | -14.29% | $30.7M |
| LSR | Lodestar Minerals Ltd | 0.006 | -14.29% | $5.1M |
| PSC | Prospect Resources Ltd | 0.086 | -13.13% | $24.6M |
| NEW | Norwest Energy NL | 0.004 | -12.50% | $14.2M |
| LCT | Living Cell Technologies | 0.014 | -12.50% | $8.0M |
| GNM | Great Northern Minerals | 0.007 | -12.50% | $3.8M |
| RBR | RBR Group | 0.007 | -12.50% | $6.1M |
Read MoreCOVID-19
