This feature explores spin-offs or de-mergers, looking at the rationale for them and how they have performed, and asks if they can be a promising hunting ground for investors.One of the UK?s largest recent spin-offs was GSK?s (GSK) demerger of its consumer healthcare division in 2022.GSK reportedly rebuffed a £50 billion offer from personal goods giant Unilever (ULVR) to buy the division, named H

It must be maddening for analysts that every time they?ve put forecasts for Darktrace (DARK) into the market, they?re forced to tear them up and start again. It happened for the third time already this year earlier this month (11 April), in the wake of a surprisingly strong third fiscal quarter update (to 31 March) that the company predicts will mean an extra $2.4 million of ARR, or annual recurri

Profit from permanent recruitment down 18.6%UK gross profit falls by 19.2%Headcount reduced by 100Shares in PageGroup (PAGE) fell 6% to 456p after the recruitment firm reported a 12.8% fall in group gross profit to £219.7 million for the first quarter of 2024.CEO Nicholas Kirk warned: ?The slower end to the fourth quarter of 2023 continued into the first quarter 2024, particularly within continen

Standard Chartered Bank director sells £9.64 million sharesBAE Systems chair buys £180,779 sharesDarktrace CEO offloads over £700,000 sharesSimon Cooper, CEO corporate, commercial, and institutional banking, and Europe & Americas of Asian-focused Standard Chartered Bank (STAN) has sold 1,482,343 shares at 650p for a total value of £9.64 million on 14 March.The bank said last week that Cooper i

UK enterprise cybersecurity firm Darktrace (DARK) is rediscovering its mojo after unveiling surprisingly strong growth and margin expansion in the six months to end December 2023. Against a backcloth of intense geopolitical tension, governments and corporate clients are becoming increasingly wary of the threat of hacking attacks, while AI (artificial intelligence) tools are making it easier for

Wine seller?s profitability significantly improvedConfident of a ?positive? 2024 performanceRecruiting new customers remains toughShares in Virgin Wines (VINO:AIM) bubbled up 1.1% to 38.4p after the direct-to-consumer online wine retailer uncorked news of a ?good? Christmas trading period and reiterated its guidance for the year to June 2024 guidance.The stock has soured more than 30% over one yea

Once again it looks like the year is going to finish with the UK stock market being a notable laggard on the global stage. So far this year the FTSE All Share has returned around 4%, compared to 14% from the S&P 500, and over 10% from the European stock market.The UK has been viewed by some as unloved and undervalued for a while now, and with a reasonable amount of justification. But there are lon

Metro Bank executives snap up sharesAscential CEO sells 300,000 sharesDarktrace CEO sells 100,000 sharesDaniel Frumkin, chief executive of Metro Bank (MTRO),bought 5,833,333 shares for a total value of £1,750,000 in this week's capital raise by the 'challenger' financial.Chief financial officer James Hopkins subscribed for 200,000 shares for a total value of £60,000 in the same placing.Metro Ban

Persistent inflation and higher interest rates are squeezing disposable incomes. In this scenario there is logic in investors putting their cash behind companies which make premium products which confer pricing power or sell affordable luxuries which help consumers to socialise or unwind at the end of the working day.One sector that enjoys both these attributes is Beverages, the domain of soft dri

Wizz Air expected to report a loss for the year but hopes for recoveryBudget carrier is looking for a return to profit in the current financial yearThe European budget airline Wizz Air (WIZZ) is expected to report an overall net loss for the year ending 31 March 2023 on 8 June, hit by a range of issues such as the Russia-Ukraine conflict as well as rising maintenance and fuel costs.However Jozsef

- Tesla ups the ante in EV price war- Going after the large US SUV market with gusto- Gross margins seen dipping to three-year low at 23.2%The timing was impeccable - just a day after the US Internal Revenue Service released the list of vehicles eligible for the electric vehicle tax credit, Tesla (TSLA:NASDAQ) cranked up the EV (electric vehicle) price war pressure, unveiling its sixth price cut a

- Peltz offloads Unilever shares- IHG's Edgecliffe-Johnson offloads £2 million of stock- Coca Cola HBC directors exercise options before they expire, and sellActivist investor Nelson Peltz has sold £70.8 million worth of Unilever (ULVR) shares held by his Trian investment vehicle, implying his work is done with trying to drive change at the consumer goods company.Peltz has been one of several bi

The FTSE 100 closed in the red on Wednesday as markets waited to see whether the US Federal Reserve would dial back the pace of rate hikes in its next interest rate decision, due this evening.The FTSE 100 index closed down 10.59 points, or 0.1% at 7,761.11 on Wednesday. Meanwhile, the FTSE 250 ended up 45.09 points, or 0.2%, at 19,898.54 and the AIM All-Share closed up 5.40 points, or 0.6%, at 873

In times of economic strife, pawnbrokers typically see a pick-up in trade as cash-strapped individuals seek ways of getting money to help pay the bills. Business is certainly booming for pawnbroker H&T (HAT:AIM) whose share price has more than doubled since October 2020 and up by more than 60% over the past year alone.In recent years H&T, which also sells high quality new and pre-owned jewellery a

- 15% dividend hike and new $4 billion share buyback- Better than expected adjusted Q3 earnings- Shares up 43% year-to-dateOil giant Shell (SHEL) topped the blue-chip FTSE 100 index on Thursday with the shares gushing 4% higher to £23.86 after it boosted the dividend by 15% and announced a new $4 billion buyback.Despite softer oil and gas prices in the third quarter to 30 September Shell delivere

- Darktrace CEO buys £120,000 worth of shares- Buying follows collapse of takeover talks with Thoma Bravo- Litigation Capital Management CEO and chair snap up combined £600,000 worth of sharesThe chief executive of cybersecurity tech business Darktrace (DARK) Poppy Gustafsson has snapped up £120,000 worth of shares in the company.This represents a show of faith in the business after the big plu

- Private equity firm decides against making a firm offer- Darktrace posts strong growth and first full year profit- Dollar and margins likely put some pressure on fiscal 2023Cybersecurity company Darktrace (DARK) saw recent share price gains wiped out as the stock plunged after private equity investor Thoma Bravo said it was walking away from a possible deal.Investor buying had sent the stock sur

- Adjusted EBITDA losses surge 261% as it piles money into groceries- 'Worst IPO in London's history', stock down nearly 75% in a year- Rider strikes on cards as workforce unionisesMeals and groceries drop-off platform Deliveroo (ROO) continues to struggle to make its business model work. The faster it grows, the larger its losses, not a good combination for the shares price, investors or the firm

Darktrace (DARK) 366.5pLoss to date: 2.3%Enterprise cybersecurity company Darktrace (DARK), which we said to buy on 21 April 2022, continues to defy stock market Cassandras after raising full-year revenue and profit guidance for the sixth time in succession.WHAT'S HAPPENED SINCE WE SAID TO BUY?The Cambridge-founded business told investors that it anticipates full-year revenues to be up 'at least'

- Cybersecurity firm ups guidance for sixth time in succession- Global turmoil highlighting digital risks to buyers- Shares jump 8% but remain 14% down on the yearEnterprise cybersecurity company Darktrace (DARK) continues to defy stock market Cassandras after raising full-year revenue and profit guidance for the sixth time in succession.The Cambridge-founded business told investors that it antici