Our portfolio of picks for 2024 is off to a solid start in what proved an uneven first quarter for the stock market as a whole.Our return of 9% is comfortably ahead of our FTSE All-Share benchmark at 3.9%. It?s a tale of feast and famine, however, with half of our selections achieving double-digit gains while 40% are in the red.THE BIG WINNERSAt the end of 2023, shares in biotech specialist Purete

Stocks in London trod a disparate path, ahead of UK inflation data, which could dictate events on Thursday when the Bank of England makes its latest decision on interest rates.The FTSE 100 index rose 15.75 points, 0.2%, at 7,738.30. But the FTSE 250 ended down 53.72 points, 0.3%, at 19,432.81, and the AIM All-Share fell 1.07 points, 0.2%, at 735.56.The Cboe UK 100 rose 0.2% to 774.76, the Cboe UK

Stock prices in London fell at midday on Tuesday, as investors nervously looked ahead to interest interest rate decisions from the US Federal Reserve and Bank of England.Amongst individual stocks, Unilever was boosted by cost saving plans. Oil prices also gave BP and Shell a boost.The FTSE 100 index was down 20.42 points, 0.3%, at 7,702.13. The FTSE 250 was down 76.27 points, 0.4%, at 19,410.26, a

Bristol Myers bids for Karuna TherapeuticsDeal agreed at $330 per share Puretech a Shares tip for 2024Our Tips of the Year for 2024 are already off to a flying start with positive news just before the market closed last Friday for biotech pick Puretech Health (PRTC).The firm announced that Karuna Therapeutics (KRTX:NASDAQ), one of its ?Founded Entities?, was being acquired by Bristol Myers Squibb

Boston-based biotechnology company Puretech Health (PRTC) has a strong track record of creating value for shareholders.Yet its share price languishes more than 50% below a sum-of-the- parts valuation and implies the company's internal pipeline of assets is worthless, which is far too pessimistic and provides savvy investors with a relatively low-risk buying opportunity.Puretech operates a unique,

AdobeIt may look like odd timing to back Adobe (ADBE:NASDAQ) just after lukewarm guidance, but we think this is a great opportunity.The creative digital software firm called for fiscal 2024 earnings per share of $17.60 to $18 on $21.3 billion to $21.5 billion revenue, a little light compared with the consensus of $18 and $21.7 billion revenue respectively.The shares plunged 7%, which seemed harsh

- Shares jump 13% after selling royalties for up to $500m- Positive late-stage trial results from schizophrenia drug- Company retains 3.1% stake in Karuna worth $180mShares in FTSE 250 biotherapeutics company PureTech Health (PRTC) jumped 13% to 230p on Thursday after selling a royalty interest in schizophrenia drug KarXT for up to $500 million.The interest was sold to Nasdaq listed Royalty Pharma

- Index changes to be announced tonight- Three new names to join the FTSE 100- Four new faces in the mid-cap FTSE 250Investors with FTSE tracker funds will be keenly waiting for details of the latest index reshuffle due to be published after the market close tonight.As well as changes to the FTSE 100 big-cap index there are expected to be several changes to the FTSE 250 mid-cap benchmark and the F

London's FTSE 100 was up 0.4% to 7,051.64 by midday on Friday with sterling also higher despite weaker than expected UK GDP growth.Growth of 0.1% in July compared to a consensus estimate of 0.6%, inhibited by the proliferation of the Delta variant that prevented many workers from being able to participate in the labour market.Significantly the largest sector of the British economy, the services se

The FTSE 100 index was 0.35% higher at 7,048.96 in early trading despite the release of official statistics indicating that Britain's economic growth in July was significant below expectations.Growth of 0.1% in July compared to a consensus estimate of 0.6%. Growth was inhibited by the proliferation of the Delta variant that prevented many workers for being able to participate in the labour market.

This is the final part of our three-part series on the FTSE 250. Read our introduction here and catch up on the growth versus value debate in part two here.In this last part of our mini-series on the FTSE 250 we take a look at some of the higher quality stocks that inhabit the UK's mid-cap universe. We will discuss some of the companies that demonstrate real financial strength and balance sheet he

FTSE 100 closed higher on Tuesday with little to spark much interest on the economic or news front as traders await the Jackson Hole event later this week.The UK's index of leading shares finished up around 16 points, or 0.24%, to stand at 7,125.78. The more UK-focused FTSE 250 added 145 points, or 0.61%, at 23,886.01.On Wall Street, the Dow Jones added over 46 points, the S&P 500 was up around se

Major UK stocks had lost their earlier gains by lunchtime with limited growth exposure seeing the benchmark FTSE 100 miss out on a wider embracing of risk assets.At 12.30pm, the FTSE 100 index was down 0.23% at 7,092.41 points, although mid-caps did better, the FTSE 250 gaining 0.44% at 23,843.98.Oil prices pushed higher continuing Monday's sharp rebound with the full approval of the Pfizer/BioNTe

UK stocks nudged higher in early trading on Tuesday as firmer commodity prices boosted mining and oil plays.By 8.40 am, the FTSE 100 index was up 0.2% at 7,121.2 points, while the FTSE 250 traded 0.4% to the good at 23,836.5 points.Major movers included mining titan BHP (BHP), which added 1.3% to £23.37, as well as oil giant BP (BP.), bid up 0.8% to 297.3p.Investor sentiment was boosted by a stro

London's FTSE 100 finished Friday's session 1.8% lower at 6,407.5 points after the worst week for markets since October. Wall Street opened in the red, the US market extending its run of losses as the GameStop saga continued.Investors have been rattled by traders on Reddit buying stocks such as GameStop in coordinated attacks against short sellers, while concerns over vaccine nationalism, surges i

London's FTSE 100 edged 8.6 points higher to 7,549.4 on Thursday with investors in cautious mood ahead of the holiday season and the Bank of England's interest rate decision at midday, with no change to the cost of borrowing anticipated. Markets seemed to shrug their shoulders following the impeachment of Donald Trump, who became only the third President in US history to be impeached.Family-contro

London's FTSE 100 cheapened the best part of 30 points to 7,065 on Tuesday, despite remarks from Donald Trump that the US and China would 'very shortly' resume trade talks. A rare bout of strength in the pound served to weigh on UK stocks that earn in US dollars, explaining the share price declines seen at Carnival (CCL) and Ferguson (FERG).Flexible office space supplier IWG (IWG) sparked up 2.6%

Following a patchy start to the week, the fabulous FTSE 100 has subsequently managed to keep its chin up and trades 19.3 points higher on Friday at 7,703.2 with a helping hand from consumer goods colossus Unilever (ULVR), bid up 74p to £44.05.Lloyd's of London insurer Beazley (BEZ) cheapens 11.4% to 493.8p after reporting a slump in first half pre-tax profit to $57.5m (2017: $158.7m), investment

One of the most unfortunate certainties of life is that it ends. Fortunately pharmaceutical firms are working on life-saving treatments to improve our quality of life and hopefully extend it.Investing in the pharma sector can be rewarding if a company develops the next big blockbuster drug but this journey is filled with risks, as we explain later.In this article we explore how investors can gain

The FTSE 100 is up 19 points to 7,554.13 in early trading as the leading index continues its momentum from yesterday. There is optimism that President Trump's tax reform may actually become law, which helped to boost US markets last night and have a positive effect on markets in other parts of the world.Online price comparison site Gocompare.com (GOCO) gains 6.3% to 105.3p on news its acquiring My