British American Tobacco (BATS)

The market seems to be fed up with many of the classic high yield stocks on the London market. Once-popular income plays like Centrica (CNA), Imperial Brands (IMB) and Royal Mail (RMG) continue to fall in value despite offering very attractive dividend yields. There used to be an argument that high yields from large cap companies would create a theoretical floor for the share price. Put ...

Bristol-headquartered tobacco titan Imperial Brands’ (IMB) first half earnings beat consensus estimates thanks to a better than expected showing in Europe and a boost from growth in its e-cigarettes business. The half year results demonstrate the resilience of the tobacco business and reassuringly, Imperial leaves its full year sales, earnings and cash generation expectations unchanged, also ...

The 10.2% year-to-date rise in the FTSE 100 is a great result but the UK stock market’s flagship index is still being comfortably outpaced by its international counterparts. And seen on a longer-term view the FTSE has definitely underperformed relative to other global benchmarks. In this article we explain why this has happened, which super sectors have contributed to the relative ...

Are you looking for undervalued and high quality companies that have the right characteristics to potentially fend off even the fiercest of rivals for at least 20 years? If so, analysis from financial services firm Morningstar may be able to point you in the right direction. Morningstar uses five sources of long term competitive advantage which, where present, may indicate a company has ...

While the performance of the FTSE 100, FTSE 250 and FTSE All-Share tends to dominate the headlines, it can be useful to take a more nuanced approach and focus on the performance of individual sectors within these headline indices. The tables show the five best and five worst performing sectors in the FTSE 350 index (a composite of the large cap FTSE 100 and mid cap FTSE 250) so far this ...

Investors of a certain vintage will recall the stock-market adage, ‘Sell in May and go away, don’t come back until St Leger Day’. The saying is based on the belief that returns during the summer months are negative so you should ‘time’ the market by selling out completely at the beginning of May and reinvesting in September in time for the horse racing meeting on St Leger Day. Once ...

Having enjoyed a strong finish on Thursday amid a big slide in sterling, the FTSE 100 softens 54.3 points to 7,301 on Friday as news that the immediate cliff edge for Brexit is being postponed drives a recovery rally in the currency. This is hurting companies deriving a significant chunk of their sales in dollars such as Unilever (ULVR) and British American Tobacco (BATS). Pharmaceuticals ...

US stocks ended down yesterday after the Federal Reserve cut its forecast for GDP growth with financial stocks and the Dollar selling off in late trading as the prospect of further interest rate rises receded. Typically as the Dollar falls, commodity prices get a boost and this is feeding through into strength in miners and energy producers in the UK this morning with BHP (BHP), Rio Tinto ...

The FTSE 100 was yesterday one of the few winners across major Western indices but it is unable to build on its early-March rebound in early trade on Wednesday, with several company results failing to impress investors. Large cap companies including insurer Legal & General (LGEN) and bookmaker Paddy Power Betfair (PPB) offset gains elsewhere with the UK’s leading index trading roughly ...

Markets start the week on a positive note on signs that the US and China are close to agreeing a tariff deal which could put an end to the trade war. Asian stocks climb with China’s Shanghai Composite and Japan Nikkei index both gaining 1% while oil prices also gain ground and the US Dollar slips. In the UK the FTSE 100 index gains 0.3% to 7,127 points with most sectors trading higher bar ...

Shares in British American Tobacco (BATS) cheapen 43.5p (1.6%) to £27.52 on Thursday, despite the tobacco titan beating expectatinos for annual sales and earnings per share and a fairly positive outlook statement. The share price drop reflects ongoing concerns over rising regulatory pressures in the US and the fact British American Tobacco faces potentially huge compensation payouts in ...

London’s FTSE 100 trades 59 points lower at 7,048 on Thursday as markets around the world take a step back amid disappointment over Donald Trump’s failure to reach a deal with North Korea and weak manufacturing data from China. The blue chip benchmark is also hit by several large companies trading without the rights to the latest dividend including AstraZeneca (AZN), off 2.2% at £61.46 and ...

We think the generous and growing income on offer from Murray Income Trust (MUT) coupled with its focus on quality companies at an attractive price will prove a winner with investors. The investment trust offers a dividend yield of 4.3% and has grown its dividend in every one of the last 45 years. Like all closed-end funds, Murray can hold back cash to act as a buffer if its underlying ...

There has been a lot of talk in the market in recent years of value being out of favour and growth stocks firmly in the ascendancy. Investors have certainly been prepared to pay a premium price to secure exposure to rapidly expanding companies or at least those who are perceived to be growth stories. Temple Bar Investment Trust (TMPL) is no follower of fads or fashion. Since August 2002 the ...

Wouldn’t it be great if in your retirement you could pay for all the boring bills in your life with a tax-free income, and keep your pension savings for the fun stuff? People who save into an ISA benefit not only from tax-free growth on their investments but they can also draw income off their investment pot tax free, meaning they can supplement their pension income. HOW MUCH DO I ...

Sterling is considered to be the ultimate barometer for Brexit and the currency movement is currently telling us that the market has become more optimistic about how the UK/EU split process will play out. The pound has increased by 4.7% against the US dollar, and by 4.1% against the euro, between 10 December 2018 when UK Prime Minister Theresa May delayed the UK parliament vote on her Brexit ...

With the latest machinations in the House of Commons over Brexit looming tonight and sterling still volatile against this uncertain backdrop, the FTSE 100 recovers some of the losses seen in recent days to trade more than 1% higher at 6,824 early on. The index is being powered by heavyweight tobacco stocks British American Tobacco (BATS) and Imperial Brands (IMB) which have relatively little ...

Investors are backing online grocery service Ocado (OCDO) with weekend reports emerging that it is closing in on a deal with Mark & Spencer (MKS) to deliver its fresh foods to customers. Ocado heads the FTSE 100 leader board in early trade on Monday, up nearly 4% at 983.2p, on the strength of the speculation despite neither business so far confirming the validity of the story. Marks ...

At just under 3,900, the FTSE 350 index stands about 10% below its mark of a year ago, which may depress some investors, especially those less experienced ones who did not experience the bear markets, of 2000 to 2003 and 2007 to 2009 or – going further back the Asian crisis of 1997-98 or the Black Monday crash of 1987. But it has still been possible to make healthy gains. Five stocks ...

Dividend yields on UK shares are at their highest level, 4.8%, since 2009. Dividends continue to grow while concerns over the trade war, Brexit and interest rates drag on sentiment. High yields are typically seen as a warning sign that dividends are unsustainable and are also a sign that stocks are out of favour. In 2018, rising profitability, more special dividends and a weaker pound helped ...