London's blue-chip index closed higher on Monday, with markets focused on diplomatic talks as European leaders and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky prepare to meet with US President Donald Trump. The gathering is a follow-up summit to Trump's meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday, which failed to produce a ceasefire in the war in Ukraine. Michael Brown, senior...

A recovery in oil prices supported a big advance in small cap oil and gas companies in 2016. The average gain for the year in the AIM oil and gas universe was morethan 60%.Not everything went up; some for good reason, others because the market failed to recognise interesting opportunities. We believe Pantheon Resources (PANR:AIM) falls into the latter camp, meaning its current price weakness...

US-focused oil exploration and production (E&P) company Pantheon Resources (PANR:AIM) takes a bath as it encounters technical difficulties with its horizontal VOBM#2 well in East Texas.The shares are down 34.3% to 98.6p - paring earlier losses which had seen them slip to 83.5p. Pantheon was the best performing stock on AIM in 2015, benefitting from earlier positive results on its acreage in...

Shares in London open flat at 6,896 with miners making the early running ahead of a quiet day of trading with the US offline because of a Labour Day public holiday.A speech by Bank of Japan governor Haruhiko Kuroda overnight is the main talking point going into today's session as the central bank chief talked up the potential for more unconventional monetary policy if the country fails to hit...

An uptick in the oil price is helping support a modest recovery in the exploration and production (E&P) sub-sector. Out of a universe of around 60 E&P companies with market caps of £10 million or more, 17 have managed double-digit advances since the beginning of March 2016.Investors need to decide if this is a dead cat bounce or if valuations really have begun to bottom out. Our view is that...

Small cap oil explorers Amerisur Resources (AMER:AIM) and Pantheon Resources (PANR:AIM) are down 12.7% to 25.8p and 6.2% to 121p respectively as both go back to the market for cash.Although these dilutive moves result in some short-term pain for investors we think there are very positive takeaways for both companies.Texas-focused Pantheon successfully completes an oversubscribed placing at...

London shares are mixed in early trade on Wednesday with blue chips guiding higher but midcaps failing to make progress and smaller companies largely flat. Traders continue to cast wary glances towards the pricing of crude and safe-haven assets but many remain jittery about the global economy. Europe was up while Wall Street and Asia fell overnight.The benchmark FTSE 100 index nudges 12...

London stocks are on the front foot in early trade on Tuesday, driven by a swathe of food and fashion updates, including better-than-expected trading from supermarket Wm Morrison Supermarkets (MRW) and department stores chain Debenhams (DEB). The FTSE 100 index pushes around 26 points, or 0.45%, higher to 5,898, with midcaps and smaller companies also in positive territory.Major European...

Investing in smaller companies can be higher risk than putting money to work in well-established blue chip businesses. Yet with additional risk comes the potential for bigger rewards, as there are few better investments than businesses that can grow over the long-term.Spotting the right smaller companies is the difficult bit. One way to mitigate single stock risk is to put your money to work...

Big money could have been made on the stock market in 2015 if you managed to pick the right companies. A 2.5% decline in the FTSE All-Share paints a misleading picture; we calculate that more than 600 stocks on the London market saw their share price rise by 10% or more in the year.Many investors believe there is merit in 'running the winners'. What better place to start than looking at the...

US focused E&P Pantheon Resources (PANR:AIM) gains 12.3% to 82p as it reveals a second positive result from its drilling in neighbouring Tyler and Polk Counties in Texas. This extends its gains in the last month to 187.5%.We previewed this activity in July. On 28 July, after delays caused by flooding in its areas of operation, Pantheon announced it had begun drilling operations on the VOBM#1...

UK investors stay on the sidelines to a large degree in early trade on Friday ahead of what some analysts believe could be a make-or-break jobs report for market expectations of a rate hike by the US central bank in December. The FTSE 100 index is virtually flat at 6,365, although midcaps manage modest gains, as do smaller companies.In corporate news, European white goods retailer Darty (DRTY)...

Esure set for premium dropLower premium growth is expected when insurer Esure (ESUR) releases its third quarter results on 11 November. Rising personal injury claims in the first half made the Sheilas' Wheels and Gocompare.com owner pledged to rise prices, which should lead to a declining share of the motor market. (MD)Fulham Shore's grillingReal Greek and Franco Manca operator Fulham Shore...

US E&P company Pantheon Resources (PANR:AIM) is down 1% at 28.45p despite commencing testing on its VOBM#1 well in Polk County, Texas.This may reflect some impatience for a result which is likely to have a significant bearing on the future destiny of the company - work has been delayed by weather and the availability of equipment - although investors will only have to wait at most another...

US-focused Pantheon Resources (PANR:AIM) is poised to drill a well in east Texas which could transform its prospects.Having floated on AIM in 2006, Pantheon has flown under the radar for many years. According to finance director Justin Hondris the company deliberately kept a low profile as it laid the foundations for the current drilling effort which has been delayed by extreme levels of...

Latham (James) (LTHM:AIM) 577.5pSheet and hardwood supplier Latham has been consistently profitable for the past 10 years, more than doubling operating profit in the same period. The Hemel Hempstead-based company is expected to grow earnings per share 19% to 39.5p this year.Leaf Clean Energy (LEAF:AIM) 34pRenewable energy investor Leaf Clean is a closed-end fund in run-off. At a meeting in...