Heritage Oil, which is in danger of being demoted from the FTSE 250 to the small cap index at the latest reshuffle, has probably left a share price revival too late.
It has jumped nearly 6% to 143.9p and is topping the mid-cap index following news that production at its flagship project in Nigeria has recovered after a period of low output. In April the company unsettled investors by failing to give an output forecast for 2013. Now it says:
The temporary factors which caused lower than expected production levels over the first quarter have been successfully addressed. We are on track to meet our production target for the year.
Meanwhile price comparison site Moneysupermarket.com is leading the FTSE 250 fallers, down 12.3p to 186.2p, but only because its shares have gone ex-dividend. But analysts at Canaccord Genuity issued a buy note, saying:
[Its valuation] looks attractive for a structural growth story, with a strong brand, which is raising the barriers to entry.
Last week the company announced a £70m special dividend at the same time as founder Simon Nixon raised £200m by selling 100m shares. Now two directors of the company have followed Nixon's example, albeit at much lower levels. Human resources director Alan Cairns and a related party sold 92,338 shares, half at 197p and half at 203p to raise £190,585 while company secretary Darren Drabble and a connected person raised £336,352.
