Stock prices in London were in the red at midday Wednesday, as the FTSE 100 suffered a blow from disappointing results from St James?s Place and Reckitt Benckiser.The FTSE 100 index was down 50.42 points, 0.7%, at 7,632.60. The FTSE 250 was down 120.21 points, 0.6%, at 19,043.45, and the AIM All-Share was down 4.26 points, 0.6%, at 741.39.The Cboe UK 100 was down 0.7% at 764.22, the Cboe UK 250 wa

Soft drinks business Britvic (BVIC) serves up full-year results on 22 November, when investors will be thirsty to learn how volumes are holding up at the Fruit Shoot, Robinsons and Tango maker which also produces and sells brands including Pepsi and 7UP in Great Britain and Ireland under exclusive agreements with PepsiCo (PEP:NASDAQ).Price hikes and volume growth helped Britvic's revenues to bubbl

Investors drawing down their pension only have selected exposure to growth stocks and in general they are sticking to income-generating shares and funds. This is according to analysis of AJ Bell's customer holdings by Shares.Many people are living for longer and are keeping their pension invested in the market in the hope of achieving capital growth as well as income. Based on AJ Bell's customer b

Shares in infrastructure investment trust HICL Infrastructure (HICL) gained 0.7% to 171.2p after it said will keep its dividend flat until 2023 following a rise in UK corporation tax.The company met its target dividend of 8.25p for the year to 31 March 2021, giving it a yield of 4.8%, and said it would maintain its dividend at 8.25p for its next two financial years. UK corporation tax is set to ri

Major UK stocks ended the day in the green, lifted for a second day by companies that should benefit from a reopening of the economy. The rally comes after the UK Prime Minister Johnson sounded cautiously optimistic on Monday, with hopes that lockdown restrictions will start to take effect from 8 March and could come to a complete end by June.Travel and leisure stocks jumped nearly 2.5% in Tuesday

UK markets were flat in early trade on Tuesday as gains from rising commodity prices, mining and energy stocks and a firm reopening trade were neutralised by weakness from banking giant HSBC (HSBA), which ditched its long-term profitability targets.At lunchtime, the commodity-heavy FTSE 100 benchmark was struggling to make any ground, slipping 0.14% at 6,602.71. Mid-caps were stronger but lost som

UK markets were flat in early trade on Tuesday as gains from rising commodity prices, mining and energy stocks and a firm reopening trade were neutralised by weakness from banking giant HSBC (HSBA), which ditched its long-term profitability targets.At 9am, the commodity-heavy FTSE 100 benchmark was struggling to make any ground, clawing single point gains at 6,613.56. Mid-caps were much stronger,

Since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, dividend investors have had a rough old time of it. Quoted company after quoted company has cut or cancelled the shareholder reward.Against this backdrop the investment trust sector has acted as a partial safe haven. Income seekers have long been attracted to investment trusts. Their ability to keep some dividend income aside during good times has helped t

Shares in investment trust HICL Infrastructure (HICL) fell 1.2% to 162p as it cut its dividend target, with income more than halving as coronavirus disrupts activity.In results for the year to 31 March, pre-tax profit fell to £50m from £285m the previous year as income slumped to £86.7m, down from £324.1m the year before and earnings per share falling to 2.7p from 15.9p.Carillion writeback and

Amid all the gloom and falling markets as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, at least one area of investment seems to be holding up relatively well.Mostly seeing smaller declines than the market year-to-date and maintaining their dividends, renewable energy infrastructure investment trusts will have been useful supports in a diversified portfolio.According to analysis from the Association of In

Demonstrating the buoyant state of the infrastructure market, Octopus Renewables Infrastructure Trust is seeking to raise up to £250m through a placing, offer for subscription and intermediaries offer and list on London's Main Market on 10 December.Infrastructure and renewable energy trusts' enduring popularity with investors is reflected in premiums to net asset value (NAV) and they continue to

Just as it looked like a short-term resolution to the Brexit saga was in sight, with a deal agreed with the EU and subsequently gaining early stage approval from MPs, a refusal by the same MPs to go along with Boris Johnson's timetable led him to put the legislation on pause and push for a general election.Johnson, who, as a result, failed to deliver on his 'do or die' promise to deliver Brexit on

Investors who prefer to entrust capital allocation decisions to a professional money manager as opposed to buying individual stocks are exceptionally well served by the FTSE 350. Within its ranks, you'll find a highly-diverse batch of investment trusts spanning all the key asset classes.Shares' number-crunching reveals a grand total of 57 investment trusts within the FTSE 350 - that is with some v

On the face of it, investing in infrastructure seems like a wise move.After all, you tend to get a steady stream of income for a long period of time. Assets such as ports, airports and toll roads aren't going anywhere anytime soon, and due to their essential nature their earnings are both predictable and less likely to be hit by volatility. They also have an explicit link to inflation through regu

A desire to generate returns through income and/or growth is a long-standing goal for investors but do you know the most popular investment products to achieve this goal?We've looked at the 30 most widely-held investment trusts among AJ Bell Youinvest customers to see which products resonate with UK investors and why they might be attracted to them.THE SEARCH FOR RISING INCOMEDelivering a high and

You may find it odd to celebrate the start of the new tax year as 6 April often brings rising taxes and falling benefits. However, the one thing in investors' favour is that the ISA allowance clock is reset. It means you can invest up to £20,000 over the coming tax year and not pay any tax or capital gains on investments inside the wrapper.The start of the new tax is often one of the busiest time

Generating a steady income from the markets in retirement isn't as hard as you might think. Doing some basic research and understanding the risks involved with certain investment products are good starting points. In this article we'll discuss these topics and more in order to help you find that prized stream of cash.Anyone deciding to stay in the markets instead of generating a fixed income throu

Meeting global energy demand will be a key challenge in the decades ahead but it should also create opportunities for investors.In this article we will discuss how you could benefit from some of the long-term trends in the power generation market through both funds and individual stocks.Global energy demand will rise by at least 30% until 2040, according to investment bank UBS.The need to produce

There is a growing appetite among investors for assets whose returns are relatively uncorrelated to the wider market given the recent volatility in stocks.The team behind upcoming investment trust float SDCL Energy Efficiency Income Trust, or SEEIT for short, are certainly hoping to capitalise on this situation as they look to raise £150m to invest in a series of energy efficiency projects.The in

Many investment trusts are diversified products, typically with portfolios made up of up to 100 individual companies. A trust which invests in other investment trusts arguably takes this to another level, potentially providing exposure to thousands of underlying investments.You get a professional insight into the prospects and performance of a variety of funds by watching the purchases and divestm