ShareSoc Growth Company Seminar (Hybrid Event), 27 November 2024, 5pm

Join us on 27th of November for our hybrid event in London. This event will consist of an in-person seminar in London, which will also be streamed live (and recorded), allowing members to watch virtually.

Please register to attend the event in-person or to watch virtually, using the 2 different links below.

Each company will present for 25 minutes and then take your questions for another 15 minutes. All attendees (whether attending in-person or virtually) will be able to ask questions and those attending the seminar will be able to network with company directors and fellow investors over drinks and a buffet.

Click here to register for the in-person seminar in London.
Click here to join the virtual event.

Event registration opens at 4.30 pm and presentations commence at 5.00 pm.
Networking will be from 8:00pm to 9:00pm.

Companies Presenting

Bioventix (BVXP)

Bioventix creates, manufactures and supplies high affinity sheep monoclonal antibodies (SMAs) for use in diagnostic applications. Bioventix antibodies are preferred for use when they confer an improved test performance compared to other available antibodies.

Most of Bioventix’s antibodies are used on blood-testing machines installed in hospitals and other laboratories around the world. Bioventix makes antibodies using its SMA technology for supply to diagnostic companies for subsequent manufacture into reagent packs used on blood-testing machines. These blood-testing machines are supplied by large multinational in vitro diagnostics (IVD) companies such as Roche Diagnostics, Siemens Healthineers, Abbott Diagnostics & Beckman Coulter. Antibody-based blood tests are used to help diagnose many different conditions including, amongst others, heart disease, thyroid function, fertility, infectious disease and cancer.

Presenter:
Peter Harrison- CEO
Peter is 65 years old and has ~30 years’ experience of antibody technology at Celltech, KS Biomedix & Bioventix.

Altona Rare Earths PLC (REE)

Altona Rare Earths (“Altona”) is a resource exploration and development company focused on critical raw materials in Africa.Rare Earths are a group of 17 chemical elements, many of which are critical to the World’s ongoing transition from carbon-based to renewable energies, and to the defence and communication sectors.

Altona is currently developing Monte Muambe, its flagship Magnet Rare Earths Project, located in Northwest Mozambique. The Project was acquired in June 2021, and Altona has so far drilled over 7,800m, and defined a maiden JORC Mineral Resource Estimate of 13.6 million tons at 2.42% TREO. A Competent Person Report including the Scoping Study for Monte Muambe was published on 18 October 2023. The Project is now at Prefeasibility Study stage, with a mining concession application in process, and a focus on metallurgical testing and process.

Altona is presently diversifying its portfolio by acquiring a limited number of critical raw material projects to complement Monte Muambe. The acquisition of the Kabompo South copper project in Zambia and of the Sesana copper-silver project in Botswana represents the first steps towards the implementation of this expanded strategy.

Presenter:
Dr Cedric Simonet – CEO
Cédric Simonet holds a PhD in Geology and has 28 years’ experience exploring, developing and mining mineral deposits in Africa and in France. He was Head Geologist and Open Pit Manager at SOGEREM fluorspar mine (Alcan, France), NuAfrica Gas (Coal Bed Methane exploration in South-Eastern Africa) and Africa Region Manager with IGE Resources AB (gold, vanadium, nickel and tantalite projects). He is a co-founder of Akili Minerals Services, a Nairobi based exploration services company, and has been involved in exploration projects on Critical Raw Materials including Niobium and REE-carbonatites in Kenya (Ruri, Homa Mountain, Buru and Mrima projects). He is also a former Chairman of the Kenya Chamber of Mines, and well experienced in operating in this and many other African countries.

Cédric is a member of the European Geologists Federation (Eur Geol no 739). He qualifies to act as a Competent Person (JORC) and as a Qualified Person (NI43-101) on a variety of Critical Raw Materials projects.

Polar Capital Global Financials Trust plc (PCFT.L)

Polar Capital is a specialist, investment-led, active fund manager. The company’s open-ended, closed-ended and alternative investment strategies are all based on long-term investment themes, specialist sectors and global, regional or single country geographies.

The company prides itself on its collegiate and meritocratic culture where capacity of investment strategies is managed to enhance and protect performance. The investment trusts are in the specialist sectors of technology, healthcare and financials. Since its foundation in 2001, it has grown steadily and currently has 14 autonomous investment teams managing specialist, active and capacity constrained portfolios, with combined AUM of £23.9 billion (as at 08 November 2024).

Presenter:
Tom Dorner, Fund Manager, Polar Capital Global Financials Trust plc
Tom joined Polar Capital as a Fund Manager in the Financials team in December 2023. He is a co-manager on the Polar Capital Global Financials Trust, with Nick Brind and George Barrow.
He joined from abrdn where he was a Senior Investment Director in the Developed Markets team and managed the abrdn Europe ex UK Income Equity Fund. He was responsible for analytical coverage of European financials and managed a number of other European investment funds during his nine years there. Prior to this, he was an analyst specialising in the European Insurance sector at Citi and Lehman Brothers in London.

Wheaton Precious Metals

Wheaton is the world’s premier precious metals streaming company with the highest-quality portfolio of long-life, low-cost assets. Its business model offers investors commodity price leverage and exploration upside but with a much lower risk profile than a traditional mining company. Wheaton delivers amongst the highest cash operating margins in the mining industry, allowing it to pay a competitive dividend and continue to grow through accretive acquisitions.

Presenter
Randy Smallwood, President & Chief Executive Officer
Randy Smallwood was involved in the founding of Wheaton Precious Metals and is currently the company’s President & CEO. Before being appointed President in January 2010 and then CEO in April 2011, he served as Executive Vice President of Corporate Development, primarily focused on growing the company through the evaluation and acquisition of streaming opportunities. Prior to Wheaton Precious Metals, Mr. Smallwood was the Director of Project Development at Wheaton River Minerals Ltd., his role through its 2005 merger with Goldcorp. Mr. Smallwood was an instrumental part of the team that built Wheaton River / Goldcorp (since merged with Newmont) into one of the largest, and more importantly, one of the most profitable gold companies in the world, and he is now focused on continuing to add to the impressive growth profile of Wheaton Precious Metals. Mr. Smallwood holds a geological engineering degree from the University of British Columbia and a mine engineering diploma from the British Columbia Institute of Technology. He also served as Chair of the World Gold Council from 2020 to 2023.

Group description:	Our group is interested in sustainable investing and our goal is to identify and evaluate businesses that will thrive through innovation and their transition to a ‘One Planet Economy’. By leveraging the skills of group members, we aim to deeply understand these businesses, particularly focusing on how they develop long-term valuable benefits for their customers. Each year, we plan to evaluate around seven businesses to identify opportunities where our valuation exceeds the market price. A successful outcome is defined as achieving a compound annual growth rate (CAGR), including dividends, of 10% over a decade.
Meeting Type/Venue:	Meetings are in-person in a pub near to Waterloo station in London.
Meeting Frequency/Timing:	Meetings are bi-monthly on a Monday from 10:45am to 4:30pm. Members are expected to also pay for their own lunch which secures the group free use of a private room in the pub. The cost is expected to be £35-40 per person, per meeting, in addition to your SIGnet membership fee.

Group description:	SIGnet Taunton is a new group with around 10 keen members at present, with a range of investment styles and experience. We welcome new members.
Meeting Type/Venue:	In person meetings at a golf club near to the centre of Taunton.
Meeting Frequency/Timing:	We meet on the first Monday of every month at a golf club near to the centre of Taunton, 11am until 3pm with a lunch break.

Group description:	An online group for those who are new to investing, or have only been investing for a few years. Including topics such as: – What is a share or a bond, why and how to buy them. – Comparing funds, unit trusts, Investment trusts and exchange traded funds. – Portfolio management and diversification. – ISAs, pensions, SIPPS and how to save tax. – How terms such as PE ratio and dividend yield are used to value a share. – How to use technical analysis or charting.
Meeting Type/Venue:	Online using Zoom.
Meeting Frequency/Timing:	Meetings are usually held on the last Monday of the month at 7:00pm.

Group description:	An online group for those who already have some experience in investing. Covering topics such as finding companies to invest in, financial statements and ratios, valuation / margin of safety, analysis of companies and investment trusts and exchange traded funds.
Meeting Type/Venue:	Online using Zoom.
Meeting Frequency/Timing:	Meetings are usually held on the last Wednesday of the month at 7:00pm.

Group description:	The Equity Income Group welcomes investors of all levels of experience, from beginners to advanced. The focus of meetings is on dividend paying Investment Trusts, though there is also discussion around individual shares.
Meeting Type/Venue:	Meetings are held online.
Meeting Frequency/Timing:	Meetings are held every 6 weeks on a weekday between 7 and 8:30pm.

Group description:	A welcoming group open to all types of investors. Typical meeting content is to have a deep dive presentation on a topic selected by the participants and a session on buy/ sell/ key lessons learnt last month.
Meeting Type/Venue:	In person at a friendly pub close to Piccadilly Circus
Meeting Frequency/Timing:	Monthly during the evening on the first Wednesday of the month.

Group description:	All levels of experience welcome. A typical meeting agenda includes: – Macro Environment – Trades: Members review existing positions and identify securities with promising TA entry patterns or setups and with suitable risk/reward. Any security, long, short, futures, options may be considered. The convener takes actual positions in trades and maintains his own detailed ledger, accurately measuring performance of individual securities and cumulative activity. Members are notified by e-mail prior to the entries or exits that are decided upon. Following each meeting an updated copy of the ledger is circulated together with the next meeting agenda. Members may wish to maintain similar ledgers of their own but there is no obligation to do so. – Technical Analysis: Techniques and systems used in trades. Members can request discussion of particular aspects of TA.
Meeting Type/Venue:	Online via Zoom
Meeting Frequency/Timing:	The first Tuesday of every month from 7 to 9pm

Group description:	Open to all investors / people with an interest in investing. Typical meeting will involve members talking about recent purchases, successes, failures and possible future purchases. Also with occasional visiting speakers or members making presentations on a topic of interest.
Meeting Type/Venue:	We aim to meet on the last Tuesday of each month in a private room at a pub in Playhatch. Start time 7pm with members encouraged to meet up around 6pm for a bite to eat / drink before hand, if their diaries allow.
Meeting Frequency/Timing:	7pm on the last Tuesday of the month. Meetings likely to last about two hours but with informal ‘overspill’ before / after.

Group description:	Our group members have wide ranging investment experience and work backgrounds. Discussion topics include reviewing our recent stock or collective investment buying and selling activity, plus what we are considering buying or selling and the reasons for our decisions. We also have a wider discussion on where we think opportunities might arise in the next few months and what we think needs to be avoided. Members occasionally lead discussions on specific topics such as recent events attended, articles or books of interest and sources of investment ideas and information.
Meeting Type/Venue:	During the pandemic our meetings were held on Zoom, but we have now resumed meeting in person at a location a few miles to the west of Colchester. Most meetings will now be in person, but it is possible that occasional meetings will be held on Zoom in special circumstances.
Meeting Frequency/Timing:	We meet midweek every two months. Zoom meetings run for about two hours from 10.30am and in person meetings from 11am until about 3pm, including a break for lunch.