Here are the most popular small cap stocks for March — a month dominated by numerous COVID-19 bandwagoners, online education and food delivery stocks, and a couple of big nickel discoveries.

In February, mounting COVID-19-led uncertainty culminated in a late-month share price bloodbath. It was much the same in March, with Australian shares recording a broad-based 22 per cent decline.

The S&P/ASX Emerging Companies Index – which gauges the health of the microcap sector – plunged 12.3 per cent at the end of February to mid-2019 levels.

By the end of March, it had dropped another 30 per cent to all-time lows.

The Emerging Companies Index over the past 10 years. Pic: S&P Global

 

HERE’S THE TOP 50 SMALL CAPS FOR THE MONTH OF MARCH >>>

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CODE NAME % RETURN PRICE 31 MARCH MARKET CAP
TDL TBG DIAGNOSTICS 862 0.250 54.40M
KAS KASBAH RESOURCES 245 0.038 5.14M
MMM MARLEY SPOON 208 0.800 126.82M
CHN CHALICE GOLD MINES 157 0.565 154.85M
CDY CELLMID 100 0.320 30.91M
LSH LIFESPOT HEALTH 64 0.054 4.74M
NZS NEW ZEALAND COASTAL SEAFOODS 63 0.013 6.89M
HT8 HARRIS TECHNOLOGY GROUP 60 0.016 3.05M
GSS GENETIC SIGNATURES 57 1.750 249.46M
ARO ASTRO RESOURCES 50 0.003 3.82M
AQS AQUIS ENTERTAINMENT 45 0.016 2.96M
SKN SKIN ELEMENTS 45 0.016 5.08M
OLL OPENLEARNING 45 0.225 31.42M
TSO TESORO RESOURCES 45 0.029 10.52M
CTE CRYOSITE 44 0.072 3.37M
AMT ALLEGRA ORTHOPAEDICS 43 0.150 14.93M
MRR MINREX RESOURCES 43 0.010 1.96M
WNB WELLNESS AND BEAUTY SOLUTIONS 43 0.005 5.17M
NSB NEUROSCIENTIFIC BIOPHARMACEUTICALS 41 0.190 14.89M
HMD HERAMED 38 0.145 15.04M
TSL TITANIUM SANDS 35 0.050 38.93M
WRM WHITE ROCK MINERALS 33 0.004 7.53M
RGS REGENEUS 32 0.070 19.45M
GSM GOLDEN STATE MINING 27 0.089 3.26M
DEG DE GREY MINING 27 0.235 251.96M
LEG LEGEND MINING 25 0.105 249.07M
FTT FACTOR THERAPEUTICS 25 0.002 2.61M
DLC DELECTA 25 0.005 3.48M
IEC INTRA ENERGY CORP 25 0.005 1.94M
DYL DEEP YELLOW 24 0.210 51.43M
3PL 3P LEARNING 24 0.840 117.17M
ZEN ZENITH ENERGY 23 0.850 126.98M
JRL JINDALEE RESOURCES 23 0.320 12.32M
DTS DRAGONTAIL SYSTEMS 23 0.135 33.60M
LHM LAND & HOMES GROUP 22 0.011 11.54M
RAP RESAPP HEALTH 22 0.195 141.58M
ESK ETHERSTACK 21 0.200 22.70M
GES GENESIS RESOURCES 20 0.006 4.70M
SHE STONEHORSE ENERGY 20 0.006 2.40M
HAW HAWTHORN RESOURCES 20 0.098 32.01M
MNF MNF GROUP 17 4.650 391.75M
BLV BLOSSOMVALE HOLDINGS 17 0.280 17.20M
OKJ OAKAJEE CORP 17 0.035 3.20M
DXB DIMERIX 17 0.140 25.41M
NME NEX METALS EXPLORATION 15 0.015 2.89M
CI1 CREDIT INTELLIGENCE 15 0.030 31.81M
SOP SYNERTEC CORP 15 0.023 5.08M
VAN VANGO MINING 15 0.115 85.90M
SM8 SMART MARINE SYSTEMS 14 0.087 29.18M
ATH ALTERITY THERAPEUTICS 14 0.016 14.39M
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The COVID-19 fighters

Digital health minnow Lifespot Health (ASX:LSH) climbed +60 per cent after announcing it was expanding its platform to help track fevers as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Genetic Signatures (ASX:GSS) (+57 per cent) has EU approval for its COVID-19 testing kit and has applied for regulatory approval in Australia. It is already selling in both regions however, thanks to an exemption.

Hair loss curer Cellmid (ASX:CDY) (+100 per cent) is getting into the virus business after winning a supply agreement to sell a China-made COVID-19 rapid diagnostic test in Australia.

And Wellness and Beauty Solutions (ASX: WNB) (+433 per cent) is selling hand sanitiser, stocking its products in Chemist Warehouse and looking to sell in Asia.

Seems like everyone is looking to make a quick buck out of the pandemic right now. Some are legit, others may be less so.

The ASX is cracking down on listed entities that have made announcements with “potentially misleading claims” around COVID-19.

“These include entities that don’t appear to have had any prior meaningful involvement in similar activities, lodging announcements claiming to have found a cure or new treatment for COVID-19; their product kills the COVID-10 virus; or to have developed new forms of test kits for COVID-19,” it announced March 31.

“It also includes entities claiming to be gearing up to use their manufacturing facilities to manufacture masks, gowns, thermometers, hand sanitisers and other medical necessities in short supply with little or no details.”

TBG Diagnostics (ASX:TDL) (+862 per cent for this month) has since been suspended from trading over whether it disclosed news that an investee’s COVID-19 test kit had been approved for sale early enough.

Skin Elements (ASX:SKN) (+45 per cent) was also questioned by the ASX about a vague statement it made in its half year report about a new product launch for an antimicrobial liquid it’s dubbed Invisi Shield.

 

Is it nickel’s time to shine?

Nickel was back in the spotlight thanks to Chalice’s (ASX:CHN) virgin Julimar discovery near Perth, announced March 23.

The maiden intercept of 19m at 2.59 per cent nickel, 1.04 per cent copper, 8.37 grams per tonne (g/t) palladium and 1.11g/t platinum from 48m was made in fresh rock at the so-called ‘Conductor E’ target.

Then Legend Mining (ASX:LEG), which announced a new “Nova-style” discovery in the Fraser Range in December, hit three massive sulphide intercepts in a maiden diamond drill hole.

These stocks bucked the trend in a gloomy base metals market, shooting up +157 per cent and +25 per cent respectively for the month.

 

Going online

A world in lockdown means that online education, retailing, and food delivery stocks are doing pretty well.

On example is Marley Spoon (ASX:MMM), a company that delivers ingredients to your door in the form of meal kits.

The stock had fallen 83 per cent since its IPO last year until early March, when punters realised this was probably the type of stock to back in a world defined by ‘social distancing’.

On March 20 the company said the lockdowns had caused “an unprecedented surge in demand for Marley Spoon’s home delivered meal kits in all our markets”.

“Q1 2020 revenue is expected to be above €42m, showing accelerating growth of more than +40 per cent year-on-year compared to Q1 2019, with only the last two weeks of March showing the benefits of the recent surge in demand,” the company said.

It jumped 208 per cent for the month.

NOW READ: February Winners Column — wannabe virus fighters ride high in a rough month for stocks