Fidessa (LSE: FDSA) and Rockhopper (LSE: RKH) see their shares slump.
The FTSE 100 (UKX) is well up from its 52-week low of 5,075 points and, barring a catastrophe, will hopefully never again be found at such depths. In fact, at 5,848 points, up 53 on the day, it's heading in the direction of its 52-week high of 5,989 points.
But if the FTSE is well away from its low point, the same cannot be said about all of the constituents of the various indices. Here are three falling to new lows...
Fidessa
The financial software and services company Fidessa Group (LSE: FDSA) plumbed a new 52-week low of 1,317p today, though it regained a few pennies to stand at 1,321p at the time of writing. The firm has suffered from falling demand, saying at the time of its last update on 22 October that "(t)he challenges in the financial markets have gone on longer than most observers were expecting with third-quarter equity market volumes dropping further" and that there is unlikely to be any short-term change.
With updated analysts' forecasts expected soon, it seems unlikely we'll see a full-year dividend of much over 2%.
SDL
SDL (LSE: SDL) plunged to a new 52-week low of 530p today, down 31% from a high of 767p. Interim results for the information management solutions company looked strong and the shares perked up a bit. But the shares looked overvalued at the time, and even after the subsequent slide they're still on a forward price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 14, based on forecasts for December 2012, and there's a dividend of only a bit over 1% expected.
It's pretty much what happens when a growth share story slows for reality to catch up with it. Oh, and there's currently a litigation problem regarding the acquisition of Trados in 2005, but the firm estimates the maximum damage to be around $3m.
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Rockhopper
Rockhopper Exploration (LSE: RKH), the oil and gas explorer drilling in the Falkland Islands area, has had a torrid time of it this year. The shares reached a 52-week high of 400p in February, but have since crashed all the way to a 52-week low of 151p -- though they have lifted back up a little today to 157p.
A number of explorers in the area have similarly fallen, as optimism for rich pickings in the area has faded after a number of drilling failures.
The smaller oil & gas explorers can be risky, and are usually volatile. The Motley Fool report “How To Unearth Great Oil & Gas Shares” examines the sector to help you avoid the pitfalls. Click here to get your free copy while it's still available.
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> Alan does not own any shares mentioned in this article.
