- Organic growth crimped by strong prior-year sales - Overall growth lifted by recent acquisitions - Both firms maintain full year guidance Builders merchant Grafton (GFTU) said it continued to see strong demand for construction materials through the first half of the year despite obvious signs of a slowing economy. Similarly, landscaping products maker Marshalls (MSLH) said it had ...

As anyone who is in the process of having work done on their house will know, lack of product availability and soaring prices for materials are proving a real headache for contractors. The bad news for homeowners – and the building industry – is that inflation is proving stickier than expected, as a raft of suppliers have indicated this week. PRICES STILL RISING Insulation maker SIG ...

The FTSE 100 finished 0.81% in the green at 7,551.72 points on Wednesday, building on Tuesday’s rally despite US CPI inflation hitting 7% in December, a 40-year high. With markets already pricing in rate rises, investors took the US inflation print in their stride, though it would have been a different story if the figure had strayed above the 7% most analysts had been expecting. Global ...

London’s FTSE 100 traded 0.66% higher at 7,540.92 points by lunchtime on Wednesday amid the release of a slew of positive local earnings updates, including guidance upgrades from retailers Sainsbury’s (SBRY), JD Sports Fashion (JD.) and Dunelm (DNLM), and as investors awaited the release of key US inflation data due later in the day. The global mood already had been lifted by testimony ...

London’s FTSE 100 started 2022 on the front foot, led by travel, leisure and energy stocks as investors attempted to move on from worries about the economic impact of the Omicron variant. Gains for oil firms, airlines and hotel, pub and restaurant plays reflected diminishing concerns over the latest Covid variant amid hopes it is milder, if more transmissible, and therefore may have a limited ...

The promise of a quick return to form at fast-fashion chain Primark saw investors pile into owner Associated British Foods (ABF) in early trading on Tuesday, but FTSE 100 gains were capped by weakness in UK banks. Barclays (BARC), HSBC (HSBA), Lloyds (LLOY) and NatWest (NWG) were all off by varying degrees. Leading shares have indeed made an underwhelming start as the downbeat mood of the ...

In our latest screening of FTSE 350 stocks with the biggest one-month upgrades to earnings per share forecasts for this year and next year, the clear winners in terms of numbers are retailers. Heading the field, somewhat surprisingly, is clothing and sportwear group Frasers (FRAS), best known for its pile-it-high-and-sell-it-cheap Sports Direct chain which accounts for more than 50% of ...

The FTSE 100 enjoyed a third consecutive day of solid gains on Wednesday, gaining 0.34% by the close to 7,150.12. The more domestic focused FTSE 250 ended within sight of the record levels attained earlier in the day while the S&P 500 was up 0.2% to 4,493.81 by 4.30pm UK time. MAJOR STOCKS ON THE MOVE Engineer Weir (WEIR) gained 3.1% to £16.97, while ‘in play’ supermarket chain ...

London’s FTSE 100 traded 0.15% higher at 7,136.57 points by noon on a quiet day for local corporate and economic news, as investors brace for an update from the US Federal Reserve at this week’s Jackson Hole get-together. The FTSE 250 rose 0.7% to an all-time high of 24,043.49. MAJOR STOCKS ON THE MOVE British Airways-owner International Consolidated Airlines (IAG) gained 2.3% to ...

Shares in building materials distributor and DIY retailer Grafton (GFTU) added 2.7% to £13.44 after the firm posted record first half operating profits thanks to the strength of the home improvement market. The company, which operates the Selco distribution business and the Leyland SDM DIY chains in the UK and Chadwicks and Woodies in Ireland, reported a 46% increase in revenues to £1.03 ...

Being in the teeth of summer holidays season was has always led to low volume and limited corporate news and the UK’s major stocks seem to be set adrift in early trading on Wednesday with no real concerted direction. That investors may be keeping their powder dry ahead of the latest Federal Reserve pronouncements at this week's Jackson Hole get-together only added to the subdued mood. At ...

One of the very few positive effects of last year’s pandemic was an increase in consumers spending on the repair, maintenance and improvement of their flats and houses. Having been confined indoors for months at a time, it didn’t take long for people to set about redecorating and adding more indoor or outdoor space so they could live and work remotely more comfortably. That led to an ...

London’s FTSE 100 finished Friday’s trading session broadly flat, off a mere 0.03% at 7,123.27 points, despite a stronger than expected jobs report in the US which confirmed that the world’s biggest economy continues to heal at a steady clip. The FTSE 250 closed 0.6% to the good at 22,747 points. AJ Bell financial analyst Danni Hewson said the slightly less celebratory mood in London ...

London’s FTSE 100 was up 0.23% at 7,141.32 by noon on Friday, the blue chip benchmark nudging higher with miners and pharmaceutical stocks leading the way, although traders keeping their powder dry ahead of the latest US employment data. Yet concerns over a recent jump in coronavirus infections outweighed reopening optimism and kept the index on course for a muted weekly ...

The UK’s leading shares had made decent gains after a slow start in relatively quiet trading on Friday with traders keeping their powder dry ahead of the latest US employment data. But concerns over a recent jump in coronavirus infections outweighed reopening optimism and kept the index on course for a muted weekly showing. At 9am, the benchmark FTSE 100 had moved 0.46% higher to 7,158.11 ...

The FTSE 100 made a decent start to the second half as the market awaits UK manufacturing data and unemployment figures from the EU. At 9am the FTSE 100 was up 1.1% at 7,119 led by consumer stocks and house builders. COMPANY NEWS Primark owner AB Foods (ABF) raised its guidance for full year pre-tax earnings to 'not less than £550 million' against market estimates of £525 ...

Shares in Irish building materials group Kingspan (KGP) touched an all-time high of €80.60, up 4.7% on the day, after it published a half-year update showing trading ahead of expectations. The firm reported that the first quarter’s strong momentum, which it flagged in its April trading update, had continued into the second quarter with ‘most key markets strongly ahead of the first half of ...

BlackRock Throgmorton (THRG) 916.59p Gain to date: 30.4% Original entry point: Buy at 702.79p, 26 November 2020 Our call to buy investment trust BlackRock Throgmorton (THRG) for its focus on quality companies which had been sold off in the initial value rally has proved a canny trade. The portfolio is dominated by small and mid-cap names which have performed strongly in the interim. A ...

It’s been a relatively quiet week for director deals with little in the way of buying or selling, but two companies in particular have seen notable activity after surges in their share price. One such company is FTSE 250 building products firm Grafton (GFTU). Chief executive Gavin Slark has sold £2.15 million worth of shares in the group, at a price of £11.98 each, after results last week ...

London’s FTSE was flat at the open on Tuesday, edging a mere 0.03% higher to 6,800.19, as concerns over the economic impact of a third nationwide lockdown were offset by a flurry of earnings upgrades. KINGFISHER CLIMBS Home improvement retailer Kingfisher (KGF) climbed 2.7% to 287p as the B&Q-to-Screwfix owner assured it is ‘comfortable’ with the top end of current market ...