UK stocks rose sharply throughout morning trading on what has been dubbed ‘Super Thursday’ as a number of high-profile companies updated the market, with Christmas results revealing lockdown’s winners and losers. At around 12.15, the UK’s benchmark FTSE 100 gained 0.7% to 6,792.66 while the midcap FTSE 250 was up 0.84% to 20,789.48. CORPORATE NEWS Supermarket Tesco (TSCO) dipped ...

Online fast fashion retailer Boohoo (BOO:AIM) upgraded annual revenue guidance after sales surged 40% to a better-than-expected £661 million in the four months to 31 December including Christmas with growth across all brands and geographies. However, shares in the Boohoo-to-PrettyLittleThing brands owner softened 0.5% to 367.4p, after a good recent run, as investors picked up on a slight ...

UK stocks moved slightly higher on Thursday despite ongoing concerns about rising Covid-19 cases across the world. At 08:40 the FTSE 100 index of leading shares was 0.3% higher at 6,770 points. In overnight Asian trading the Japanese Nikkei 225 index gained 0.9% while the Chinese SE Composite index lost 0.9%. Brent Crude prices nudged up 0.4% to $53.2 a barrel and Gold prices were ...

To really understand a company you need to go back to the fundamentals of its performance. This is the first in a series of articles on company financial statements where we delve into the numbers and highlight what is important and how to get the most out of the accounts. First, we look at the profit and loss statement in two parts. THINK LONG TERM Investing should be a long-term ...

We are championing UK stocks despite the introduction of the latest lockdown measures. For more than four years London-listed shares have trailed in the wake of nearly all other major global markets, but the early Christmas present of a Brexit deal should end much of the uncertainty which led to this underperformance. We are already seeing a dramatic reversal in fortunes with the FTSE 100 going ...

The rally in global markets reversed on 21 December as investors started to consider the implications of a more infectious strain of coronavirus. Share price declines were most prevalent in the retail, leisure and oil sectors, which shows that the market is worried about a delay to economic recovery. Investors need to consider how these sectors could be affected as we move into 2021. In a ...

Shares in online fast fashion retailer Boohoo (BOO:AIM) fell 1.6% to 304.4p as the firm appointed a new auditor but disappointed some investors by not hiring one of the ‘big four’. Following a tender process led by its audit committee, Boohoo said its board of directors has approved the proposed appointment of PKF Littlejohn as its new auditor with immediate effect. It comes after Boohoo ...

The collapse of Philip Green’s Arcadia Group, owner of Topman, Topshop, Burton and Dorothy Perkins, into administration is widely expected to see rival retailers bid for these brands. The announcement also prompted JD Sports (JD.) to abandon its plan to buy department store Debenhams out of administration, with the 200-year-old chain facing liquidation – notably because Arcadia had ...

A second national lockdown in England and restrictions in Wales and Scotland mean the run-up to Christmas 2020 will be very different to anything retailers and shoppers have experienced before. This year is going to be a digital Christmas and that has implications for numerous companies on the stock market, which we will explore in this article. People have started ordering goods online far in ...

Directors of online fashion retailer Boohoo (BOO:AIM) have swooped in to take advantage of a drop in the company’s share price after it was hammered by the market earlier this week. Shares in the business fell significantly on Monday, down from 315p to around 250p, after it confirmed press reports that its auditor PwC had resigned, having reportedly cited reputational risks associated with ...

Despite a strong start for UK shares, driven by renewed hope over a US stimulus package and a coronavirus vaccine, the FTSE 100 finished modestly lower on Monday. Investors were unnerved by another wave of Covid-19 lockdowns in Europe, a disappointing third quarter Chinese growth figure as well as the probability a pandemic stimulus package won’t arrive before the US election. By close of ...

UK shares got off to a strong start on Monday morning as renewed hope over a US stimulus package and a coronavirus vaccine helped investors shrug off concerns over a no-deal Brexit and negative interest rates. Yet by lunchtime, the FTSE 100 was largely flat as the boost from US stimulus hopes, vaccine developments and Chinese economic data waned. US futures suggested Wall Street would manage ...

Shares in online fashion retailer Boohoo (BOO:AIM) plunged 12.95% to 274.7p after auditor PwC resigned, reportedly highlighting the reputation risks of continuing to work with the firm. In a statement, Boohoo confirmed it has launched a tender process for a new auditor, which PwC will not take part in, but pointed out that PwC remains its auditor at this time. It comes after the news was ...

UK shares got off to a strong start on Monday morning as renewed hope over a US stimulus package and a coronavirus vaccine helped investors shrug off concerns over a no-deal Brexit and negative interest rates. Optimism has grown that US lawmakers can agree on a fresh round of stimulus after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Sunday set a 48-hour deadline for lawmakers to cut a deal on economic aid ...

UK stocks traded higher on Friday, buoyed by Brexit deal hopes and growing confidence that a US stimulus deal would be approved. At the close the FTSE 100 was up 40 points or 0.7% to 6,019, back above the 6,000 level for the first time in more than three weeks. Gains were broad-based with nearly four sectors up for every sector which lost ground. Top gainers were aerospace, mining and tech ...

UK stocks traded higher on Friday, buoyed by Brexit deal hopes and growing confidence that a US stimulus deal would be approved. At midday the FTSE 100 was up 40 points or 0.7% to 6,018, lifted by buying across most sectors. Property stocks were well bid, along with miners and energy producers. Utilities and house builders were weaker after their recent out-performance. Sterling was steady ...

UK online fashion retailers Asos (ASC:AIM) and Boohoo (BOO:AIM) received a nice lift on Friday after German rival Zalando SE raised its full year earnings guidance thanks to stronger than expected trading in the last three months. Asos rallied 3% to a 12-month high of £54.51 while Boohoo gained 2.2% to 344p on the news that Europe’s leading online fashion retailer had raised its outlook for ...

Extra costs in multiple areas of the business present a headwind for fast-fashion retailer Boohoo (BOO:AIM). First-half results on 30 September failed to excite the market as better than expected sales growth was overshadowed by guidance for lots of extra spending. Customers returning fewer clothes helped boost the gross margin but Boohoo is now guiding for return rates to drift back to ...

Despite Wall Street heading higher on stimulus package hopes on Wednesday afternoon, helping European markets to regain their footing, the FTSE 100 finished 0.53% lower at 5,866.10. Weighing on sentiment was the latest data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), which revealed UK GDP dropped 19.8% in the second quarter of this year, better than the first estimate of 20.4%. Despite the ...

UK shares were volatile on Wednesday, moving significantly higher initially before falling back into the red after the release of better than expected, but still bad, second quarter gross domestic product (GDP) figures. Before trading began, the blue-chip FTSE 100 index was expected to fall as investors struggled to digest last night’s messy US presidential debate between Donald Trump and Joe ...