Sponsored by Saxo

 

Good morning everyone, and welcome to August 28, 2024 – an important date in the history of fizzy drinks and other refreshing beverages.

It was on this day in 1898 that a fella called Caleb Bradham, the inventor of a popular fizzy drink decided to rename it from “Brad’s Drink” – a meaningless, vague moniker – to Pepsi Cola… which isn’t really all that much better.

Bradham went with Pepsi, because (I theorise, with no basis in truth whatsoever) that Caleb’s Coke-Adjacent Caffeinated Caramel-Coloured Cola Concoction was deemed to be too wordy, and “Sorry, we don’t stock Coca-Cola” was determined to be too close to a trademark infringement, despite being a phrase that is heard far too frequently for my liking.

Sadly, while changing the name, Bradham overlooked the fact that he could also have changed the recipe at the same time, and taken something to market that didn’t taste like someone left a bottle of decent cola in the sun on the backseat of a Torana for three weeks.

But, in Pepsi’s defence, it was responsible for setting Michael Jackson on fire that one time, so… swings and roundabouts, I guess.

Luckily for you, you won’t have to send the King of Pop up in flames in order to get your hands on good pre-market info today.

That’s because – as always – we’ve worked super-hard to gather together lots of fiddly little things below, so you don’t need to go ferreting all over the internet for your ASX info this morning.

 

COMMODITY/FOREX/CRYPTO MARKET PRICES

Gold: US$2,514.90 (-0.08%)

Silver: US$30.01 (+0.37%)

Nickel (3mth): US$16,893/t (+2.15%)

Copper (3mth): US$9,173/t (flat)

Zinc: US$2,841/t (+0.50%)

Oil (WTI): US$77.24 (-0.21%)

Oil (Brent): US$80.21 (-1.49%)

Iron 62pc Fe: US$101.81/t (+1.44%)

AUD/USD: 0.6783 (-0.26%)

Bitcoin: US$$62,836.70 (-0.10%)

 

WHAT GOT YOU TALKING

Behold! Here’s Earlybird Eddy Sunarto’s Nasdaq Wrap, the perfect gift for that person in your life who believes that too much Nasdaq is never enough.

 

 

YESTERDAY’S ASX SMALL CAP LEADERS

Here are the best performing ASX small cap stocks:

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

Wordpress Table Plugin

 

Yesterday’s Small Cap Winners included:

Shipbuilder Austal (ASX:ASB) surged 5% in a relief rally after agreeing to a US$24 million penalty to avoid criminal prosecution by US regulators in a fraud investigation. Austal was accused of falsifying financial information to give the appearance it was fulfilling its targets on a major US Navy contract. In 2022, Austal settled an investigation by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission by admitting to a civil breach and paying a $650k penalty.

Miramar Resources (ASX:M2R) was up on news that the company has been granted Exploration E08/3676 over the high-grade copper-lead-silver occurrence at the Joy Helen prospect, in the Gascoyne region of Western Australia. Miramar has previously announced rock chimp sampling from an initial reconnaissance field trip returned results including 5.49% Cu, 42.0% Pb and 73.48g/t Ag, and 5.43% Cu, 36.7% Pb, 36g/t Ag and 0.27% Zn.

Gold Mountain (ASX:GMN) was up on news of further results from its fieldwork at its Iguatu Project area, showing “extensive copper-gold anomalies indicative of IOCG copper mineralisation”. The company says there’s been a major area of anomalous copper detected, with 38km2 of anomaly within tenement and 14 km2 of very highly anomalous copper. Gold anomalies are in most areas of copper anomalies, with few gold anomalies not associated with copper.

Bass Oil (ASX:BAS) was rose after the company announced that initial results from the Kiwi 1 Extended Production Test (EPT) indicate gas flow rates in line with expectations and condensate yields far exceeding the company’s expectations. Bass says that the well has been flowing 4.1 million cubic feet per day (mmcfd) of gas and 988 barrels of condensate per day at a flowing wellhead pressure of 1585 psi.

Surefire Resources (ASX:SRN) was up on news that is executed a Joint Cooperation Agreement with Mid West Ports Authority to determine optimal solutions for export of product through the Port of Geraldton, with the aim of securing port access for 1.25Mtpa of export capacity, allowing the company to accelerate a supply chain solution to support the development of Victory Bore vanadium project with the export of concentrate to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Antilles Gold (ASX:AAU) was up after releasing a supplemental announcement to its 21 August notice, outlining its find at the Nueva Sabana gold-copper deposit in central Cuba. In the gold column, Antilles is reporting intercepts including 2m @ 25.26g/t Au from 38.5m (incl 1m @ 45.39g/t Au), while on the copper side the results have turned up 25m @ 1.76% Cu from 52m (incl 4m @ 5.56% Cu).

Peako (ASX:PKO) was up on news that it has appointed Ryan Skeen as CEO, effective today. Skeen currently serves as a Non-Executive Director of Heavy Rare Earths Limited (ASX: HRE), sports a Master of Applied Finance (Distinction) and a B.Bus (Financial Risk Management), and brings “expertise in financial markets, strategic leadership, and corporate governance” with him to the table.

Acrux (ASX:ACR) jumped after announcing the US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) approval of its generic version of Aczone Gel, 7.5% (Dapsone Gel, 7.5%). This approval marks Acrux’s fifth successful ANDA (Abbreviated New Drug Application) for a topical treatment, adding to its growing portfolio. The generic Dapsone Gel, 7.5% is designed for treating acne vulgaris in patients aged nine and older. According to data, the market for this product in the US exceeds US$37.4 million annually.

Queensland Pacific Metals (ASX:QPM) was up on  news that the company has signed new contracts to cover Townsville Power Station (“TPS”) dispatch rights and North Queensland Gas Pipeline (“NQGP”) gas transport and storage service, which the company says will provide it with ‘a significant reduction in fixed operating charges and ensures it will be financially robust with capacity to accelerate its’ gas production growth plans”.

Cleanspace (ASX:CSX) delivered a financial snapshot this morning, and the news was good. The company reports revenue $15.7 million, representing growth of 30% v PCP (H2 + 32%) and has delivered annual expense savings of $4 million, leaving the company with $9.8 million in cash on hand.

Identitii (ASX:ID8) was up on news of a milestone in the patent infringement case it is fighting against JP Morgan in the US, after the US Patent and Trademark Office rejected JP Morgan’s call for Identitii’s patent to be set aside. As such, the matter remains pending in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware, and there is currently a motion to dismiss the case in front of the district court that has not yet been ruled upon.

The niobium heater is real as Caprice Resources (ASX:CRS) has entered into a binding agreement to acquire an additional 430km2 of strategic exploration tenure in WA’s West Arunta region from Rio Tinto’s (ASX:RIO) exploration arm – right next to its Bantam project. The large landholding acquisition now makes Caprice the third largest ASX-listed explorer in the highly prospective West Arunta. The burgeoning mining district, in northeast WA, has ignited exploration for the critical mineral around the world after WA1 Resources’ (ASX:WA1) Luni deposit discovery last year – especially for ASX ressies in Brazil, where 90% of current production takes place, largely through privately-owned CBMM.

TechGen Metals (ASX:TG1) has zoomed up the charts today with high grades of up to 7.05% antimony (Sb) hits at its Station Creek project in WA’s Pilbara. The company went to ground sampling rock chips on the back of 1980s data that the project area was perhaps prospective for antimony, yet was only explored for uranium base metals and gold in the past. On review of the antimony anomalism found within Station Creek, TG1 is planning further work to assess the project’s potential.

 

YESTERDAY’S ASX SMALL CAP LAGGARDS

Here are the worst performing ASX small cap stocks:

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

Wordpress Table Plugin

 

TRADING HALTS 

Bass Oil (ASX:BAS) – pending the announcement of results from Kiwi 1 Completion and commencement of the Extended Production Test in the Cooper Basin.

Riversgold (ASX:RGL) – pending an announcement regarding results from the Northern Zone Gold Project.

Macro Metals (ASX:M4M) – pending an announcement regarding exploration results at the Goldsworthy East Project.

Omega Oil & Gas (ASX:OMA) – pending the release of an announcement related to a material capital raising.

IXUP (ASX:IXU) – pending the release of an announcement related to a material business update.

Frontier Energy (ASX:FHE) – requested in connection with a proposed capital raising.

Energy Resources of Australia (ASX:ERA) –  pending the release of an announcement in relation to a capital raising.

 

At Stockhead, we tell it like it is. This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.