Interest rates are expected to stay higher for longer to combat the sticky inflation which remains a threat to investors? hard-earned wealth and purchasing power. During periods of high inflation, it is crucial to invest in companies that possess pricing power, because these firms can pass on increased costs to customers, enabling them to maintain profit margins and generate the robust cash flows

Cranswick (CWK) £40Profit to date: 11%In November 2023, we said investors hungry for positive earnings momentum and an unbroken 33 years of dividend growth should take a closer look at pork and poultry products supplier Cranswick (CWK).We saw scope for further earnings forecast upgrades based on strong UK food trading highlighted by leading grocer Tesco (TSCO).There is also underappreciated upsid

Trust returns to long-run outperformance trendBenchmark-beating 17.6% returnUK mid-caps cheaper than large-capsJean Roche-run investment trust Schroder UK Mid Cap Fund (SCP) returned to form in style over the year ended 30 September 2023, delivering a net asset value total return of 17.6% versus the disappointing 30% decline in the previous year.This beat the 13.6% total return from the benchmark

Strong first half with sales up 12% and pre-tax profit rising 24%Adjusted operating margin improves to 6.8%Full year pre-tax profit upgraded to top of market forecastsPremium food supplier Cranswick (CWK) was one of the top gainers in the mid-cap FTSE 250 index on Tuesday, rising 2% to £37 after delivering tasty first half results and raising full year guidance.The shares notched-up a new 12-mont

Investors hungry for a stock with positive earnings momentum and which has racked up 33 years of unbroken dividend growth should buy Cranswick (CWK), a key supplier of pork and poultry products to supermarkets including Tesco (TSCO), Sainsbury's (SBRY) and Marks & Spencer (MKS).Admittedly the consumer backdrop is tough, but Cranswick's retail customers are outperforming peers. Notably Britain's bi

Obesity is one of the fastest growing public health issues facing the world. The World Health Organisation estimates there are two billion overweight adults, of which around 650 million are technically obese.Having a body mass index over 30 means someone is obese, while anyone with a score over 25 is classified under this system as being overweight. Experts predict almost half of US adults will be

Firmly out of favour with investors since the Brexit vote seven years ago, the FTSE 250 index rallied strongly on the release of the latest UK inflation data (19 July). This showed UK CPI rising by 7.9% year-on-year in June, lower than forecasts of an 8.2% rise, theoretically reducing expectations for the scale of future interest rate hikes from the Bank of England.Yet even after a big one-day jum

Demand resilient in core product categoriesCost inflation 'starting to slow'Progress in pet products ahead of Pets at Home launchShares in Cranswick (CWK) fattened up 2.5% to a 12-month high of £34.28 after the gourmet sausage, pork and poultry producer upgraded its year-to-March 2024 outlook on the back of a strong first quarter trading, with volume growth returning across many categories.Despit

Price hikes help annual sales 15.7% higherDividend raised for 33rd consecutive yearPets at Home supply partnership revealedShares in Cranswick (CWK) fattened up 5.7% to £33.18 after the premium food producer delivered robust full-year results in the face of stiff cost and consumer headwinds and raised the dividend for an impressive 33rd consecutive year.There was relief among investors as the fre

- Multi-cap trust underperforms due to small cap bias- Dividend cover restored- Cranswick and Marshalls among new purchasesJanus Henderson-managed Lowland (LWI) underperformed the FTSE All-Share in the year to September 2022 as the multi-cap trust's bias to higher-yielding shares and smaller companies lagged an index with a pronounced large cap bent.On the positive side of the ledger, the annual d

With the price of the average weekly shop going up by more than 10% this year, is there a way for investors to play the rise in spending on 'essentials' by owning shares in the companies which make the products we all buy?Shares has analysed the typical UK shopping basket to see what conclusions could be drawn.WHAT IS IN THE 'OFFICIAL' BASKET?The ONS (Office for National Statistics), which prepare

The idea behind value investing is to buy shares for less than they are worth in the hope they reach their so-called 'fair' value and generate a better than market return.This article explores popular yardsticks used to find value shares, explains how they are used and highlights the advantages and drawbacks.Before starting it is worth bearing in mind that none of the metrics discussed are perfect

- Strong 1H sales growth +12.4%, like-for-like +10.7%- Dividend up 3%- Outlook unchanged despite macro challengesPremium food producer Cranswick (CWK) delivered strong first half revenue growth of 12.4% to £1.12 billion and like-for-like growth of 10.7%.The resilient performance in the face of 'a relentlessly challenging operating environment' was well received with the shares gaining almost 4% t

Among the strategies that can richly reward those investors with a bit of patience is dividend growth investing.At its heart this involves putting money to work in companies that compound their earnings over time and convert a high proportion of profits into the cold, hard cash needed to fund consistent increases in the shareholder reward.One fan of this investing style is legendary US fund manage

After a multi-year run of impressive gains investors have been let down by fast growth stocks in 2022. The US technology-heavy Nasdaq index has fallen more than 20% since the start of the year as investors have suddenly balked at paying high valuations to gain exposure to the potential for significant growth in the future.The performance of this headline index doesn't even tell the whole grim stor

UK shares saw selling pressure on Thursday following the Bank of England's historic decision to deliver the first back to back interest rate increase since 2004.Sentiment was further dampened following a 24% decline in Meta shares, previously known as Facebook which sent US indices into the red with the tech heavy Nasdaq Index down 2.25% and the SAP Index off 1.4%.Meta has been impacted by competi

The Bank of England has made the historic decision to deliver the first back to back interest rate increase since 2004.The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted unanimously in favour of raising the benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points to 0.5%. The decision had been expected by the market.The benchmark FTSE 100 and the mid-cap FTSE 250 indexes traded 0.3% and 0.6% lower on the news at 7,556.6

Major shares in London opened higher on Thursday, albeit modestly, lifted by earnings from energy and consumer companies as investors braced for an expected second consecutive rate hike by the Bank of England.At 9am, the benchmark FTSE 100 is 0.1% up at 7,590.86, led by Compass (CPG), while BT (BT.A) checked further progress. Mid-caps remain under pressure, the FTSE 250 losing 0.25% at 22,198.16.U

The FTSE 100 finished the final trading session of January broadly flat, off 0.02% at 7,464.37 points in fact, while the FTSE 250 edged up 1.3% to 21,926.62, as many investors and traders sat on their hands ahead of the Bank of England's Monetary policy Committee meeting on Thursday and awaited earnings from Alphabet and Amazon across the pond.In the FTSE 100, investment trust Scottish Mortgage (S

London's FTSE 100 ticked up 0.1% to 7.472.9 points on Monday with investors awaiting the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee meeting on Thursday.UK telecoms titan Vodafone (VOD) was the top performer on the blue chip benchmark, bid up 3.6% after it was targeted by activist investor Cevian.Oil leviathan Shell (RDSA) is now trading without its dual listing. The consolidation into a single li