Investors got seriously spooked back in February 2024 when Palo Alto Networks (PANW:NASDAQ) lowered revenue and billings guidance for fiscal year 2024 (to 31 May), causing analysts to lower forecasts and price targets. Palo Alto stock tanked, losing nearly 30% in a day, a savage reckoning after running hot since the start of 2023. That?s been a problem. Equity markets can get carried away when a s

Discounts and premiums to NAV (net asset value), which is the value of all the investments an investment trust holds minus any debt or loans, are among the trust universe?s unique quirks and can confuse novice investors. At the moment the vast majority of trusts trade at a discount.Annabel Brodie-Smith, the AIC?s (Association of Investment Companies) communications director, says: ?Only around 20

Companies tend to list on the stock market when conditions look ripe for a healthy reception from investors so as to get a deal away at the best price.After a fallow period for IPOs (initial public offerings) in 2022/23, activity appears to be gathering pace buoyed by the FTSE 100 and FTSE All-Share notching up new all-time highs in recent weeks.In an unusual turn of events, London could benefit f

Equities on both sides of the Atlantic registered record highs on Wednesday, as a slowdown in US inflation prompted stocks to move higher as Federal Reserve interest rate cut hopes strengthened.Aside from the US data, there was a slew of M&A developments threatening to steal some of the spotlight in London. The owner of the Royal Mail backed a possible bid, while Wood Group said no to a suitor aga

The FTSE 100 ended higher in London, with hope of UK interest rate cuts in the summer picking up, while US stocks were largely higher despite an inflation caution from the Federal Reserve chair.Investors also had a trade war worries to contend with, as the US slapped tariffs on billions worth of Chinese imports, including in the electric vehicle and chip spaces.The FTSE 100 index rose 13.14 points

Stocks in London started off steady on Tuesday, with Vodafone leading the FTSE 100 on the back of better-than-expected annual results, as new data showed a slight increase in the UK unemployment rate.The FTSE 100 index opened up 9.70 points, 0.1%, at 8,425.78. The FTSE 250 was up 20.22 points, 0.1%, at 20,580.56, and the AIM All-Share was down 1.15 points, 0.2%, at 785.11.The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.

London?s FTSE 100 ended lower in quiet trade on Monday, with the latest development in the Anglo American-BHP saga providing some excitement, as investors look to Wednesday?s US inflation data for fresh impetus.The FTSE 100 index ended down 18.77 points, 0.2%, at 8,414.99. It ends a six-day win streak for the large-cap index.The FTSE 250 closed down 85.04 points, 0.3%, at 20,560.34, and the AIM Al

Having started the year betting on up to half-a-dozen interest rate cuts, then having to undo those bets as stronger-than-expected US economic data and Fed comments pointed at the possibility of one or even no cut in rates this year, investors? heads have been in a spin for the last few weeks.Cue the return on 3 May of the ?Goldilocks? scenario, where the US economy turns out to be moderating so i

Aurora Investment Trust (ARR) 243pMarket cap: £185.3 millionInvestors seeking a value-oriented fund focused on avoiding permanent capital losses first and foremost, while offering exposure to the improving consumer outlook among other themes, should buy Aurora Investment Trust (ARR). Managed by long-term value investment firm Phoenix, the dividend-paying trust?s 10.2% discount to NAV (net asset v

Markets were sunny at the time of London?s closing bell on Friday, with investors across the pond enthused by renewed hopes for a Federal Reserve interest rate cut.The FTSE 100 index closed up 41.34 points, 0.5%, at 8,213.49. The FTSE 250 ended up 112.21 points, 0.6%, at 20,164.54, and the AIM All-Share closed up 3.42 points, 0.5%, at 771.53.Over the course of the week, they were up 0.9%, 1.7%, an

European equities went into Friday afternoon in the green, on the hope that the US jobs report will be softer than the prior month and help calm some hawkish Federal Reserve interest rate expectations.Every batch of hotter US data takes some conviction out of Federal Reserve rate cut bets. Earlier this year, investors hoped the Fed would cut three times in 2024.The FTSE 100 index was up 39.24 poin

Global RevPar up 2.6%More than 6,200 rooms opened in Q12024 share buyback 30% completeShares in Intercontinental Hotels (IHG) fell over 3% to £76.36 on Friday after the global hotels operator reported low single-digit growth in global RevPar (revenue per available room) for the first quarter of 2024.This performance was below expectations and dragged on shares in IHG, which have rallied 37% over

The FTSE 100 finished strong on Thursday, coinciding with a successful day for New York stocks in the aftermath of the Federal Reserve?s status quo interest rate decision on Wednesday evening.The FTSE 100 index closed up 50.91 points, 0.6%, at 8,172.15. The FTSE 250 ended up 125.74 points, 0.6%, at 20,052.33, and the AIM All-Share closed up 3.13 points, 0.4%, at 768.11.The Cboe UK 100 ended up 0.6

Whitbread (WTB) £31.76Loss to date: 8.5%When we initially recommended buying Premier Inn owner Whitbread (WTB) last summer our thesis was the shares were too cheap given the firm?s prospects and the renaissance in travel in general.Throw in an element of self-help, such as the sale of certain low-yielding assets, and we expected the market to come to its senses and re-rate the company?s shares.WH

Since BP (BP.) reported its full-year results on 6 February, events in the Middle East have helped drive Brent crude oil prices higher to bubble around the $90 per barrel mark.While this has already provided a boost to BP?s share price, it is only likely to have affected the last few weeks of the first-quarter trading period which BP will be reporting on when it updates the market on 7 May.Investo

London Stocks finished down on Tuesday, despite rallies from Whitbread and HSBC, as Wall Street was in the red ahead of the Fed?s major interest rate decision this week.The FTSE 100 index closed down 2.90 points at 8,144.13. The FTSE 250 ended down 119.40 points, 0.6%, at 19,965.39, and the AIM All-Share closed down 2.59 points, 0.3%, at 760.74.The Cboe UK 100 ended down 0.1% at 813.44, the Cboe U

London?s FTSE 100 pushed higher on Tuesday afternoon, as its winning streak looks set to continue, though blue-chip benchmarks in Frankfurt and Paris struggled as shares in carmakers went into reverse.The FTSE 100 index was up 47.90 points, 0.6%, at 8,194.93. The FTSE 250 slipped just 2.92 points, to 20,081.87, and the AIM All-Share was up 0.85 of a point, 0.1%, at 764.18.The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.

Further £150 million buyback£150 million of cost savings plannedShares down 16% year-to-datePremier Inn-owner Whitbread (WTB) pleased investors with news of an extension to its buyback programme and a new cost-saving initiative as its full-year profit undershot market estimates.After languishing around the £30 level to begin with, the shares slowly climbed 110p or 3.5% to £31.50 by late mornin

London equities finished in the green on Monday, outpacing its European peers, ahead of the Federal Reserve?s eagerly awaited interest rate decision on Wednesday.The FTSE 100 index closed up 7.20 points, 0.1%, at 8,147.03. The FTSE 250 ended up 260.63 points, 1.3%, at 20,084.79, and the AIM All-Share closed up 8.05 points, 1.1%, at 763.33.The Cboe UK 100 ended up 0.1% at 814.08, the Cboe UK 250 cl

Stock prices in London were up heading into the afternoon on Monday, beating more cautious trade on mainland Europe, as investors shifted focus onto this week?s Federal Reserve interest rate decision in the US.The FTSE 100 index rose 40.94 points, 0.5%, at 8,180.77. It had climbed to 8,189.14, its best-ever level.?The blue-chip index continues to glow and sustain energy that we haven?t seen in the