Higher than expected UK inflation and a stronger reading on US retail sales conspired to stoke inflation fears on Wednesday, sending the FTSE 100 down 0.6% to 6,710.90 points by the close, by which time the S&P 500 across the pond was off by 0.7%. CORPORATE NEWS Cigarettes colossus British American Tobacco (BATS) dropped 4% to £26.40, even as it reported a rise in annual profit, citing ...

Shares in British American Tobacco (BATS) cheapened 6% to £25.88 on Wednesday despite the Dunhill-to-Lucky Strike maker beating expectations with its full year results. ‘BAT’ shrugged off the impact of the global pandemic to deliver growth in group earnings and new categories for 2020, but an uncertain outlook for 2021 weighed on sentiment towards the stock, with the tobacco titan warning ...

As the oft-quoted disclaimer forewarns, ‘past performance is no guide to future returns’, yet those funds and managers that routinely outperform over economic and stock market cycles must be pursuing a winning process that should pique the interest of investors. To find theses super-consistent unit trusts and open-ended investment companies (OEICs), Shares analysed data from FE Fundinfo to ...

UK stocks fell in early trade on Friday and look poised to close the week lower as fresh lockdowns and rising virus cases dampened hopes of a swift economic recovery. The British economy will take more than two years to recover to its pre-coronavirus levels, according to a poll by Reuters, with more than 70 economists saying it would contract 1.4% this quarter. The poll comes alongside figures ...

London’s FTSE 100 finished Wednesday’s session up a modest 0.3% at 6,575.7 as the pound weakened ahead of prime minister Boris Johnson’s dinner with European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen to discuss Brexit. UK blue chips were buoyed by rising investor optimism that US lawmakers will strike a new stimulus deal for the world’s largest economy as well as Johnson ...

London’s FTSE 100 traded in positive territory on Wednesday amid rising investor optimism that US lawmakers will strike a new stimulus deal for the world’s largest economy. Blue chips were also buoyed by another bout of good news after Johnson & Johnson notified markets that its single-dose vaccine will complete final trials in January. Keeping a lid on gains however was prevailing ...

Dunhill-to-Lucky Strike brand owner British American Tobacco (BATS) has raised top line guidance for 2020 to the upper end of previous expectations on the back of an improved volume outlook. Performing strongly despite the challenges presented by the pandemic, ‘BAT’ upgraded constant currency adjusted revenue growth guidance to the high end of its previous 1%-to-3% forecast range for ...

London’s FTSE 100 opened 0.5% higher on Wednesday to 6,590.80 amid rising investor optimism that US lawmakers will strike a new stimulus deal for the world’s largest economy. The Trump administration has made a new fiscal stimulus offer of $916 billion to Congressional Democrats, though reports suggest there are still disagreements between the Republicans and Democrats on certain issues ...

With the contentious US presidential election seemingly settled and Covid-19 vaccines on the way, multinational companies that do best during periods of global growth could see a more favourable backdrop. That scenario would be welcomed by the BlackRock North American Income Trust (BRNA), a value-oriented fund invested in higher-quality large businesses. BlackRock North American Income ...

When we analyse the performance of high-yielding stocks, more often than not investors tend to lose more on the value of their holdings than they receive in dividends, which begs the question why own them in the first place? This is particularly relevant to companies in the FTSE 100 which are widely perceived by investors to be rock solid sources of income. Classic examples of companies which ...

Companies buying other companies is very common and this is often referred to as pursuing a mergers and acquisitions strategy, or M&A for short. Acquiring businesses can bring numerous benefits for the purchaser, but this strategy is no slam dunk, for where there are opportunities there are also risks to the buyer and to its shareholders. In simple terms, companies mainly make acquisitions ...

A speech by US president Donald Trump shortly before European markets were due to open sent investors running for cover at the prospect of a drawn-out election result and the threat of legal action to prevent the counting of postal votes in key states such as Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. European index futures including the FTSE, the French CAC and the German DAX swung from modest ...

London’s FTSE 100 extended yesterday’s gains on Tuesday morning, continuing to recover from last week’s sell-off. Investors braced themselves for the contentious US Presidential Election in which Democrat Joe Biden remains the betting favourite to win. Anticipation is high that he will have a more favourable trade policy with China and the EU, while the market is also counting on more ...

It’s been a tough year for people who rely on their investments for income thanks to widespread dividend cuts. Income fund managers have now rejigged their portfolios to names which they believe will be dependable source of dividends or bond coupons going forward. Their changes make for interesting reading, particularly for anyone who prefers individual stocks to investment funds as it might ...

David Smith, fund manager of Henderson High Income Trust (HHI), argues the lockdown losers that dragged on performance in the half to June will emerge from the Covid-19 crisis in ‘a strong position relative to their competition’. And despite having been through a period of dividend suspensions, deferrals and cuts, Henderson High Income forecasts an increase in the 2020 total ...

Global cigarette giant British American Tobacco (BATS) rose 1.9% to £27.06 on Friday despite missing first-half earnings estimates, after the Dunhill-to-Lucky Strike brand owner said it had sold more higher-priced cigarettes and seen strong demand for vaping products in its biggest market, the US. ‘BAT’ insisted consumption in the US was ‘resilient’, while also maintaining guidance for ...

UK stocks headed into the weekend on a firmer note after strong results from US technology stocks overnight and generally upbeat earnings commentaries from major UK firms. Sales updates from US tech giants Alphabet (which owns Google), Amazon, Apple and Facebook all beat market expectations, demonstrating the strength of their businesses during the pandemic and leading to renewed gains for the ...

UK dividends plunged 57% in the second quarter and could see a 40% decline across the whole of 2020, according to financial administrator Link. Second quarter dividends fell by 57.2% to £16.1 billion on a headline basis (including special dividends). Excluding specials, exceptionally high this time last year, the decline was 50.2% to £16 billion. Link’s best-case scenario now sees ...

Shares in British American Tobacco (BATS) wafted 3.4% lower to £30.15 on Tuesday after the global cigarettes titan was hit by coronavirus lockdowns in emerging markets. The firm cut annual adjusted profit and revenue forecasts, blaming the impact of prolonged lockdowns in South Africa and Mexico, as well as weaker sales in countries including Bangladesh and Vietnam. Cushioning the blow for ...

News that mobile telecoms firm Vodafone (VOD) will continue paying dividends gave income investors some cheer after a series of cuts, cancellations and deferments of dividends from UK stocks. There are still a significant number of FTSE 100 firms which have not yet made an explicit announcement on the dividend. The table shows the highest yielding names (based on current forecasts) which fall ...