UK shares added to their recent gains with the FTSE 100 index tacking on another 25 points or 0.4% to 6,549 in early trading as corporate results continued to inspire buying. The pound pulled back from its recent peak of almost $1.39 to $1.382 while Brent crude futures held their ground above $61 per barrel and gold continued to lag other metals, trading at $1,840 per ounce. COMPANY NEWS ...

Shares in insurer Prudential (PRU) were the worst performers in the FTSE 100 on Thursday, dropping 9% to £12.18, after the firm announced it had abandoned plans to float its US subsidiary and was eyeing a sizeable capital increase to de-leverage and fund further expansion in Asia. Rather than follow its original strategy of listing its US business, Jackson Financial, and reducing its remaining ...

UK stocks pushed higher at the open on Wednesday, despite the sobering news UK gross domestic product (GDP) fell by a record 20.4% in the three months to June, confirmation the UK has lurched into its deepest-ever recession, as the bulls focused on a better than anticipated economic bounce-back in June. At 8.30, the FTSE 100 was up 36.7 points, or 0.6%, at 6,191.04. Admiral (ADM) added ...

UK stocks were weakeer on Friday with the FTSE 100 index closing near its lows for the day, down 88 points or 1.4% to 6,124. Weighing on the benchmark were travel and leisure stocks and large insurers such as Legal & General (LGEN), M&G (MNG) and Prudential (PRU). Continuing geopolitical tensions between the US and China offset the positive news that UK retail sales bounced back ...

Investors woke on Monday to the surprise news that the chief executives of two of the UK’s biggest financial firms, insurer Aviva (AV.) and Lloyds Bank (LLOY), were stepping down. In the case of Aviva, Maurice Tulloch, who was only appointed just over a year ago, is stepping down with immediate effect due to family health reasons. His replacement, Amanda Blanc, is currently an independent ...

According to the latest Dividend Dashboard from AJ Bell (AJB), the FTSE 100’s forecast dividend pay-out has fallen from £91 billion back in January to £62 billion this month, while earnings cover for dividends is still worryingly thin. That reduction would represent a 17% fall in the pay-out in 2020 compared to the previous year after an 11% drop in 2019, leaving the total at its lowest ...

Having invested in shares since he was a kid, Duncan from London is using his investment expertise to rebuild his ISA after spending most of his savings on house renovations. Duncan, who is in his early 40s, has been investing actively for around 15 years. He works full-time and owns his own home with a mortgage. He describes investing as his hobby and says: ‘My late grandfather was an ...

The equity markets have just endured a difficult period but over the long term they remain an excellent vehicle for growing your cash and, in turn, helping to fund a comfortable retirement. In this article, and with the help of the head of active portfolios at AJ Bell Ryan Hughes, we have identified four compelling fund picks for a retirement portfolio. These products look to capture a range of ...

For all the talk of stock markets bouncing back from March lows, UK shares have only delivered marginal gains in the past six weeks. At 6,088 on 26 May, the FTSE 100 index was up just 5.1% since 14 April, despite some wild one-day moves. US stocks have performed in a similar fashion. While coronavirus and its impact on the economy and company earnings are still the main drivers, older concerns ...

London’s FTSE 100 opened stronger on Wednesday, up 53 points at 6,120.72 early on as optimism that economies were recovering from the COVID-19 crisis offset concerns about rising political tensions in Hong Kong that have soured US-Sino relations. Wealth manager St James’s Place (STJ) improved 4.7% to 917.8p on news it had boosted funds under management during April, with management also ...

After several days of stocking up, director deals over the past week have seen a more even spread of buying and selling. One of the most interesting deals involves embattled cruise operator Carnival (CCL), whose board member Randall Weisenburger boosted his stake tenfold as he bought 1.3m of its New York-listed shares at $8 each, for a total of around $10.4m. It came as part of Carnival’s ...

At the time of writing more than a quarter of the FTSE 100 index has elected to defer, cancel or cut their final dividends for 2019 or interim dividends for their next fiscal year. Perhaps the biggest blow to income seekers has come from the banking sector, where the Prudential Regulatory Authority made it clear that neither dividend payments nor buybacks from Barclays (BARC), HSBC ...

London’s FTSE 100 plunged 9.4% to 5,324.57 points in afternoon dealings on Thursday, leaving the blue chip benchmark on course to register the third biggest one day fall in its history. Equity markets slumped around the globe, spurred by fears over the coronavirus pandemic and with US president Donald Trump’s 30-day European travel ban also spooking investors. The markets also swooned ...

Global insurer Prudential (PRU) is in the crosshairs as activist investor Dan Loeb took a near-5% stake in the company and urged the FTSE 100 constituent to separate its US and Asian operations. Loeb runs Third Point, manager of investment trust Third Point Offshore (TPOU) which we recently featured as a Great Idea in Shares.  He believes a break-up of Prudential, which last ...

The measure of calm that descended on London markets in early trade on Tuesday failed to last with UK shares diving into the red again by late morning. At 11.40m, the benchmark FTSE 100 had slumped 0.8% to 7,100.49, while the FTSE 250 falgged by a similar margin at 20,951. This followed Monday’s huge sell-off and heavy falls in Far East stock markets overnight. Shares in Japan fell ...

Seasoned investor Richard Penny (pictured below) says the UK is cheap, particularly further down the market capitalisation scale. The fund manager also believes that financial sector firms have become ‘somewhat de-risked’ following the Conservative Party’s thumping general election victory. The well-followed manager of TM CRUX UK Special Situations (BG5Q5X2) is also palpably excited about ...

The revamped Woodford Income Focus (BD9X6V3) is set to reopen in two weeks’ time, fund administrator Link has confirmed. Under the new management of Aberdeen Standard Investments (ASI), the fund has been suspended since October 2019 and dealing and will recommence dealing under the new name of LF ASI Income Focus. Investors in the fund will be able to place buy and sell shares in the fund ...

Fallen star fund manager Neil Woodford’s one-time flagship fund Woodford Equity Income is now returning its depleted capital to investors. The first payment of cash to investors is expected to be on or around 30 January, representing about 70% of the fund’s current value. If you feel royally let down by Woodford and want a better fund generating income, help is at hand. Rather than ...

Many people in the UK are eagerly waiting to discover what their investment in the Woodford Income Focus (BD9X6V3) fund will look like under the new management of Aberdeen Standard Investments (ASI). The fund has been suspended since October 2019 and dealing is expected to recommence in the coming weeks under the new name of LF ASI Income Focus. While the details of the restructured ...

We think most investors haven’t woken up to the value creation potential on offer from financial group M&G (MNG). Its shares are starting to move upwards following a demerger from Prudential (PRU) last year and it is now a member of the FTSE 100. A study by Deloitte and The Edge reported that since 2000, spin-offs have generated 10 times the average gain of the MSCI Index during ...