London’s FTSE 100 ended Thursday’s trading session 0.37% lower at 6,715.42 as early gains evaporated by the close. Hints that lockdown could persist until the summer in the UK sapped sentiment, while the S&P index across the pond traded broadly flat. CORPORATE NEWS In company news, Sage Group (SGE) jumped 5% to 601.2p as it reported a near 5% rise in recurring revenue for the final ...

London’s FTSE 100 edged 0.2% higher to trade at 6,754.1 points by midday on Wednesday as markets looked to build on yesterday’s Inauguration Day rally, although the pound’s strength versus the US dollar interrupted the progress of the blue chip benchmark. US futures suggested shares would hit new record highs on Wall Street as 46th president Joe Biden gets his feet under the table in the ...

Construction kit maker Somero Enterprise (SOM:AIM) saw a bounce back boom in building projects late in 2020, and that means full year results will sail beyond previous expectations. Analysts at FinnCap hurried out a note to clients first thing on Thursday with a 25% hike in earnings per share (EPS) estimates that will grab the attention of many fund managers and retail investors. The analyst ...

Investors reacted positively to better than expected trading updates from video gaming companies Sumo Group (SUMO:AIM) and Team17 (TM17:AIM) on Thursday, pushing their shares up 7% and 1% respectively. The video games industry has seen strong growth through the pandemic as more people take up playing games during lockdown. SUMO STREAMING AHEAD Provider of creative development services to ...

A strong year-end trading update form brick manufacturer Ibstock (IBST) helped it top the FTSE 350 leaderboard on Thursday, rising 8.2% to 213p. The company lifted its guidance on earnings following cost cuts and ‘strong’ performance in the fourth quarter of the year. For the 12 months to 31 December 2020, the company said it now expects to report adjusted earnings before ...

Retail logistics specialist Clipper Logistics (CLG) has had a storming run over the past year with its share price more than doubling as the firm has grown revenues and earnings significantly during lockdown. Its executive chairman Steve Parkin appears to have taken advantage of that after Carlton Court Investments, a company ultimately controlled by Parkin, sold 11 million shares at 575p each ...

Shares in high-flying Pets at Home (PETS) perked up 1.7% to 410p on Thursday after the essential retailer confirmed it continues to benefit from the lockdown pet craze and provided additional colour around its strong third quarter (Q3) and Christmas performance. The clear Covid winner flagged accelerating momentum behind its retail and veterinary businesses during Q3 and assured investors the ...

London’s FTSE 100 got off a relatively decent start by 9am on Thursday, up 0.13% to 6,749 after rising 0.41% at the market open, building on the modest gains of Wednesday as the US awaited the inaugural address of its incoming president. On Wall Street the S&P 500 closed at 3,851.3, up 1.39% as President Joe Biden addressed the nation, reportedly the biggest rise on inauguration day since ...

UK stocks remained flat at midday as investors shuffle the deck by rotating in and out of sectors ahead of the next big move for the broader market. Joe Biden will be inaugurated as the 46th president of the United States today, with US markets rising overnight and European equities on the front foot today. At 12pm, the benchmark FTSE 100 had nudged 0.07% lower at 6,708.11 with ongoing ...

Upmarket fashion brand Burberry (BRBY) was one of the top performing FTSE 100 stocks on Wednesday after giving investors several reasons for optimism. Yes, third quarter (Q3) sales dropped 9% on a like-for-like basis, worse than the 7% expected, but efforts to reel back markdowns helped shore up profits. There is also promising signs of demand recovery in Asia. Burberry stock rallied more ...