Retail bellwether Marks & Spencer (MKS) may need to deliver a modest ?beat? to the £679.8 million consensus pre-tax profit estimate, along with a reasonably confident outlook statement, when it serves up full-year results (22 May) if the foods-to-fashion giant is to sustain recent positive share price momentum.Led by CEO Stuart Machin, the FTSE 100 company?s turnaround is gaining traction and Mar

In the last few weeks, the drumbeat of companies complaining about the lowly valuation of their shares and floating the idea of moving to the US market has grown steadily louder.First there was miner Glencore (GLEN), then oil major Shell (SHEL) started making noises and most recently online retailer Ocado (OCDO) has come under shareholder pressure to move its listing.What is significant is these a

Shares in Ocado (OCDO) have fallen by 20% over the past month as the online grocer continues with its fractious relationship with joint venture partner Marks & Spencer (MKS).Despite reporting average orders per week of 414,000, an 8.4% increase compared with the first quarter of 2023, and a 10.6% rise in revenue for Ocado Retail for the 13 weeks to 3 March, trouble is brewing for the online grocer

After almost closing at a new high in early April, the UK?s blue-chip FTSE 100 has finally made it into the ranks of indices hitting new all-time highs thanks to a 4.5% gain since the start of January.On 22 April the index reached its highest ever close and on 23 April it moved through its previous intra-day high.The UK clearly isn?t in the same league as the US, where the S&P 500 has notched up n

The FTSE 100 came off session lows but still struggled to find its groove heading into Tuesday afternoon, with share price falls for miners meaning it underperformed continental peers.The FTSE 100 index was up just 3.00 points at 7,920.57. The FTSE 250 was up a more convincing 90.13 points, 0.5%, at 19,703.66, while the AIM All-Share was down just 0.02 of a point at 737.24.The Cboe UK 100 was marg

Average orders of 414,000 per week grew 8.4%Average basket value up 2.1%, basket size stableOcado shares down 37% year-to-dateShares in Ocado (OCDO) were marginally higher at 463p this morning as the online grocer reported a 10.6% rise in revenue for its Ocado Retail joint venture to £645.23 million for the 13 weeks to 3rd March 2024Average orders per week of 414,000 grew 8.4% compared with the f

London?s FTSE 100 ended higher on Friday, but suffered another losing week, as focus turns to some key updates on fiscal policy in the UK and monetary policy in the eurozone.On Wednesday, the UK government delivers its latest budget, expected to be the final one before a general election. On Thursday, the European Central Bank announces its latest interest rate decision.The FTSE 100 index rose 52.

Shares down 32% year-to-dateTech solutions revenue up 44%Ocado Retail revenue up 7%Shares in Ocado (OCDO) ripened 1.7% to 499p this morning after the online grocery specialist reported a group adjusted profit of £51.6 million for the 53 weeks ended 3 December 2023 compared with a £74.1 million loss in the same period a year ago.Total revenue was up 9.9% to £2.8 billion for the year.And the onli

Stock prices in London were mostly in the green on Thursday morning following a slew of earnings releases, ahead of a key US inflation reading.The FTSE 100 index opened up 19.31 points, 0.3%, at 7,644.29. The FTSE 250 was up 53.29 points, 0.3%, at 19,066.87, and the AIM All-Share was down 0.68 of a point, 0.1%, at 737.36.The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.4% at 766.62, the Cboe UK 250 was up 0.3% at 16,429.

European equities struggled to find their groove on Tuesday, as the FTSE 100 finds gains hard to come by in a tricky January so far, while stocks in New York are set for a tepid return to trading.The FTSE 100 index was down 36.20 points, 0.5%, at 7,558.71. It has fallen over 2% since the start of the year. Heading into Tuesday, it had 10 days of trading in the new year. It rose in just three of th

Ocado.com average basket value up 3.8%Shares down 18% over the past yearRecord Christmas sales for Ocado RetailShares in Ocado (OCDO) were up over 6% to 661p in morning trading as the online grocery retailer said retail revenue for the 13 weeks to 26 November 2023 grew by 10.9% to £609.4 million.The 50-50 joint venture between Ocado and Marks & Spencer (MKS) added that volumes of total items ?gre

Stock prices in London, Paris and Frankfurt jumped on Thursday morning, as the US Federal Reserve signalled interest rate cuts for 2024.Still to come on Thursday, the Bank of England and European Central Bank will announce their own interest rate decisions.The FTSE 100 index opened up 155.54 points, 2.1%, at 7,703.98. The FTSE 250 was up 598.88 points, 3.2%, at 19,294.64, and the AIM All-Share was

Major indices make biggest gains since JanuaryDriven by hopes that inflation and interest rates have peakedMid-cap FTSE 250 beats blue chip indexNovember was a great month for risk assets with major stock indices racking up their biggest gains since January. The German Dax was the leading European index, gaining close to 10% while the UK blue chip FTSE 100 was a laggard notching up a 2% gain.The d

Retailer Marks & Spencer (MKS) is the gift that keeps on giving. Its share price is up 162% since October 2022, dividends are back after a four-year absence, and analysts keep finding reasons to upgrade earnings forecasts. In fact, the analyst consensus earnings estimate has increased 11 times this year, according to Stockopedia data.Earnings growth is a key driver for share price growth so it mak

Grocery sales top forecastsUnderlying growth ahead of TescoFull-year guidance increasedSainsburys (SBRY), the UK's second-largest supermarket group by market share, dished up a surprisingly positive first-half trading update and raised its forecast for full-year earnings and cash-flow.The shares, which had been drifting towards six-month lows since peaking in May, leapt more than 5% to 275p and li

Spin-offs, demergers and disposals are often good news for investors, although it's not often a firm sees its share price rise when it has to pay someone to take assets off its hands, especially when those assets were previously thought to be earnings positive.In the case of hospitality firm Restaurant Group (RTN), however, that is exactly what happened.The group, best known for its Wagamama chain

Average orders per week grew 1.9% year-on-yearActive customers reached 961,000Average basket value up 4.2%Shares in Ocado (OCDO) rose over 3% to 811p in morning trading as the online grocery specialist reported a 7.2% rise in revenue to £569.6 million for the 13 weeks to 27 August 2023.Over the past year Ocado shares have risen over 33% a stark contrast to its performance in 2022 when its shares

Global smaller-cap 'Discovery' fund ratings cutShared focus on US health and softwareNegative returns over one and three yearsEdinburgh-based investment manager Baillie Gifford saw two of its global growth funds lowered by ratings agency Morningstar from Silver to Neutral last week after a prolonged period of underperformance.The funds, which together managed over £1 billion assets at the end of

£1,000 invested in Ocado, Babcock and Rolls-Royce apiece would have returned an average 40%Combined initial £3,000 stake would now be worth £4,20110 FTSE 350 stocks have rallied more than 20%Did you back any of July's biggest FTSE 350 share price winners? £1,000 invested in Ocado (OCDO), Babcock (BAB) and Rolls-Royce (RR.) apiece would have returned an average 40% over the month, or in other w

The Ocado (OCDO) believers have been out in force again as the grocery delivery and warehouse automation company returned to an underlying profit in the six months to 28 May 2023, and confirmed its full year earnings guidance on 18 July.Since then, the stock has soared nearly 35% to 781p, making it oneof the best performers among FTSE 350 companies.Driving the performance was the technology soluti