• Credit Suisse makes most of big week for Tempest Minerals 
  • Big player ups bet on lithium stock Enterprise Minerals 
  • Leading WA prospector’s company sees sparkle in Zulieka Gold 

Trading Places is Stockhead’s semi-regular, pretty damn fascinating recap of the latest red flag buying and selling of ASX small cap shares.  It is here that the rubber really hits the road for fund managers, stakeholders, distant (and not-so-distant) relatives and other famous or infamous investors.

Specifically, Trading Places tracks substantial shareholder movements – namely when an individual’s trade in a company’s stock crosses the 5% threshold. These are usually directors, individual investors, institutional investors… or their distant (and not-so-distant) relatives.

Shareholders are required by basic human decency (and the law) to publicly declare via the exchange when their personal stake goes below or above 5%, and from there, every movement in their holdings while owning above 5%.

Here’s the form to get you started, if reading this makes you twitchy.
 

Buy – Resources in demand

Cost of living pressures and rising inflation has seen a move towards value stocks and resources of late with the juniors explorers also in demand.

Global invesment bank Credit Suisse made the most of a big week for junior explorer Tempest Minerals (ASX:TEM).  Shares in Tempest soared ~265% last Monday (March 28) after the junior made a big copper discovery in its very first hole at ‘Orion’, part of the flagship ‘Meleya’ project in WA.

Credit Suisse increased its stake in Tempest on March 29 from 6.70% to 10.32%. Shares continued to climb for Tempest throughout the week finishing a staggering ~640% higher on close of markets on Friday than it started when markets opened Monday morning.

Interestingly, Tempest dropped back its substantial holdings to 5.22%, making further buys but also big sells on March 30. Copper is tipped to be one of the top producing metals for 2022.


 

Major investors back winning Enterprise Metals

Guina Global Investments and associated companies has increased its stake in lithium producer Enterprise Metals (ASX:ENT) which has seen its share price rise 120% in the past month. 

The junior explorer recently reported “elevated lithium results” in soil sampling at the Matheson pegmatite, part of the ‘Bullfinch North’ project in WA.

This company said pegmatite (lithium host rock) was first mapped in 1939 but gold has always been the focus of exploration in the area.

Guina Global increased its stake from 5.1% to 6.36% in Enterprise Metals. The company’s share price has risen 120% in the past month to 2 cents as prices for battery-making commodities lithium carbonate and spodumene continue to break records.


 

Yandal’s Zulieka Gold buy up

Zulieka Gold (ASX:ZAG) has put out an announcement to say Yandal Investments, a company owned and controlled by prominent WA prospector Mark Creasy, had become a substantial shareholder.

Formerly Dampier Gold, ZAG’s share price exploded in January after the $3m private placement with Yandal Investments was announced. 

Creasy became well-known in 2012 when microcap Sirius Resources made the Nova nickel discovery, which was eventually sold to Independence Group (ASX:IGO) for $1.8 billion.

Creasy was a joint venture partner in the project and the deal earned him $630 million.

ZAG’s share price has fallen back ~27% in the past month to 2 cents.


 

Turaco Gold glitters for major backer

Major shareholders Yi Weng and Ning Li continue to see good fortune in Turaco Gold (ASX:TCG), increasing their stake in the company from 5.2% to 8.14% on April 4.

On Monday Turaco announced that Resolute Mining (ASX:RSG) had sold out of the junior gold miner.  West African Resolute has seen ~33% dive in the West African gold stock’s shares over the past 12 months after posting a $367.5m loss including a $227.5m impairment.

Turaco has had better fortune with its share price rallying 50% in the past year to 10 cents.


 

Harvest Lane increases stake in Carawine Resources

Harvest Lane Asset Management and its associated entities has ponied up for a bigger stake in gold and base metals explorer Carawine Resources (ASX:CWX).

Harvest Lane increased its holdings from 10.36% to 11.44% on April 1.  Carawine recently announced drilling at the Hercules prospect – part of its Tropicana North project in WA – had returned the highest gold grade yet. 

The Carawine share price has increased ~17% in the past year to 21 cents.


 

Allan Gray backs Alumina as aluminium price rises

Investment services firm Allan Gray and related bodies is backing higher aluminium prices increasing its stake in Alumina (ASX:AWC), which owns 40% of Alcoa’s Alumina World Chemicals business alongside the Pittsburgh based aluminium giant.

The price of aluminium has been surging since the Ukraine-Russian conflict as Australia and other countries bans alumina and bauxite exports to Russia.

Alan Gray has increase its stake in Alumina from 13.18% to 14.24%.  The Alumina share price is up ~18% in the past year to ~$2.06.


 

UBS bets big on Syrah Resources

Swiss multinational bank UBS Group and its related bodies corporate became a substantial holder with 6.79% in another junior explorer Syrah Resources (ASX:SYR).

In one of the largest mining raises of 2022 so far Syrah announced in February it was chasing $250 million in fresh equity after announcing the expansion of its active anode materials plant in Louisiana.

The company last year also announced it had struck a deal to send ~8000t a year of graphite from its Mozambique mine to EV giant Tesla. Syrah’s share price has risen impressively ~31% to $1.74 in the past month.


 

First Sentier ups stake in Cooper Energy

Asset management company First Sentier Investors Holdings and its related corporate bodies has upped its stake in veteran oil and gas producer Cooper Energy (ASX:COE).

First Sentier increased its stake in Cooper from 9.92% to 11.64%.   Cooper is a ~$482m market cap South Australian oil and gas explorer and producer. Its share price has risen ~3.74% in the past year to 29 cents.


 

Alliance Aviation flying high

Kiowa Two Thousand Corporate Trustee Company is showing faith in Alliance Aviation (ASX:AQZ) buying up ~$5.3 million worth of stock in March to increase its stake in the company from 10% to 11.09%.

Alliance’s core focus is on FIFO workers and with the resources sector continuing to go strong, it’s tipped for growth.

The Alliance share price has risen an impressive ~46% in the past week to ~$3.76.


 

Cat Rock increases stake in Cettire

Away from resources Cat Rock capital has increased its holding in online luxury fashion platform Cettire (ASX:CTT),  ponying up ~$10 million to increase its stake from 9.77% to 11.72%.

Cat Rock Capital is a fund manager with an office in the US state of Connecticut but incorporated in the Cayman Islands and first became a substantial holder in Cettire last year. 

The news come after founder and CEO Dean Mints recently sold  ~35 million shares for ~$47.2 million.  The sale followed the shares recent release from voluntary escrow and represented 9.18% of the company’s issued capital.

Mints remains Cettire’s largest shareholder, retaining a 56.72% shareholding in the company, while Cat Rock is believed to be the company’s second largest shareholder.