Lunchtime ASX small cap wrap: Who’s swimming in cash today?

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We’re nearing the end of January, which means quarterly reporting season is in full swing.

(In other words, ASX companies are racing to submit their December 4C filings within the one-month deadline to avoid a breach of their disclosure obligations.)

As always around this time, a key focus for small-cap investors is cash; most commonly, how much of it are companies burning through, and how much of a cash-cushion do they have on hand to pay the bills?

For a thought exercise, let’s compare the plight of a struggling junior minerals explorer with Apple, the global tech behemoth.

The company just released quarterly results of its own overnight. iPhone sales were strong, and Apple’s cash on hand ticked higher — to a tidy $US207.06 billion.

Based on current IMF estimates, that means Apple could more or less buy Australia’s dearly-beloved Pacific Island neighbour of New Zealand (GDP of $US204bn).

And adjusted for current exchange rates (the Aussie is buying around 68 US cents), Apple’s cash pile equates to almost $300bn.

So theoretically the Silicon Valley giant could also make an outright purchase of Commonwealth Bank and BHP (yes, both of them) which have a combined market cap of around $260bn. Eye-watering stuff.

To the ASX, and markets drifted lower into midday trade as the ASX200 slipped by 0.24 per cent to 7,014 points. The Small Ords index was down 0.78 per cent to 2,986 points.

WINNERS

Here are the best performing ASX small cap stocks at 12pm Thursday January 30:

Swipe or scroll to reveal the full table. Click headings to sort.

Consolidated Zinc Ltd (ASX:CZL)

The metals explorer found itself on the winners list after an update on its Plosomas operation in Mexico.

Consolidated Zinc said early assay results revealed a “high-grade gold system” in concession areas adjacent to its fully-owned zinc-lead-silver project.

JCurve Solutions (ASX:JCS)

IT provider JCurve also held its gains into the break, after a trading update which showed the company booked new revenue streams out of Asia and maintained sales growth in the Australian market.

The company’s core product offering is as the exclusive provider of JCurve ERP, a version of the Netsuite enterprise resource planning software specialised for small businesses.

ALSO READ: Bigger is better for B2B software platform JCurve as shares get a boost

LOSERS

Here are the worst performing ASX small cap stocks at 12pm Thursday January 30:

Swipe or scroll to reveal the full table. Click headings to sort.

Nearmap (ASX:NEA)

Shares in the aerial imaging company took a hit after a disappointing market update, where it cut its annual contract value guidance from $116-$120m to $102-$110m.

The company attributed the falls to some deals that fell through, but said the impact would be offset by more new contract wins.

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