Support services firm Serco (SRP) gained 1.6% to 135.9p as it stuck with its 2021 forecasts and issued 2022 guidance in line with analysts’ consensus estimates. The company updated the market ahead of a capital markets day at which it will outline expectations to deliver revenue growth of 4% to 6% from 2022 onwards, improve its margins by as much as 1% to 6% and convert at least 80% of its ...

UK stocks dropped in early trading after a selloff in overseas markets following the first case of the Omicron variant in the U.S. and a warning from technology firm Apple that demand for its latest iPhone had weakened. Meanwhile, investors were also watching energy prices ahead of an meeting of OPEC+ oil producers, which it is hoped will lead to an increase in supplies after the U.S. and ...

UK stocks recovered from their intraday weakness to close marginally higher, despite a rise in sterling as expectations grow of a rise in official interest rates at next month's Bank of England meeting. At the close on Monday the FTSE 100 index was 4 points to the good at 7,352 points with financial stocks offsetting a sluggish mining sector following the COP26 climate conference. Brent ...

UK stocks were slightly weaker on Monday as investors eyed Wednesday's inflation report and expectations grew of a rise in official interest rates at next month's Bank of England meeting. At midday the FTSE 100 index was 14 points or 0.2% lower at 7,335 points with mining stocks lagging in the wake of the COP26 climate conference. Overnight trading in Asia was mixed with China’s SE ...

The FTSE 100 index was flat in early trading as weakness in mining shares offset gains in oil and bank stocks. At 9am the index of leading shares was up 0.2% to 7,358 points. Overnight trading in Asia was mixed with China’s SE Composite up 0.6% after retail sales and industrial output beat expectations, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 index was down 0.2%. Brent crude prices were down 0.7% to ...

Risk-averse investors wary about rising rates and their potential to roil long-duration assets including highly rated growth stocks should look at Fidelity Special Values (FSV), the investment trust with stakes in cheap UK stocks that boast significant recovery potential. While the shares have swung from a net asset value discount to a modest premium, this reflects the fund’s strong ...

'Form is temporary, class is permanent’ runs the old adage often used to describe sportsmen and sportswomen, though the maxim can also be applied in the investment industry, where you’ll find a cohort of collectives that consistently do the business for their holders. Funds that routinely outperform over economic and stock market cycles must be pursuing a winning process that should pique ...

Rising inflation expectations means that growth-hungry investors will need to be increasingly discerning and disciplined in terms of their stock picking in the months ahead. One sensible solution is to invest in a fund where the manager has pedigree in backing dynamic growth companies without overpaying to own the shares. Step forward Mark Slater, who has managed Slater Growth Fund ...

UK stocks pulled back from their recent highs on Wednesday as first quarter GDP fell 1.6%, revised down from 1.5% reflecting the most recent lockdown, and oil prices retreated. Brent crude futures gave up 0.3% to $74 per barrel while precious metals were also weaker, with gold down 0.2% at $1,758 per ounce, capping its worst monthly performance for a couple of years, down 8% since the start of ...

UK stocks pulled back on Wednesday as first quarter GDP fell 1.6%, revised down from 1.5% reflecting the most recent lockdown, and oil prices retreated. Brent crude futures gave up 0.3% to $74 per barrel while precious metals were also weaker, with gold down 0.2% at $1,758 per ounce, capping its worst monthly performance for a couple of years, down 8% since the start of June. At 12.15pm, the ...

UK stocks made a subdued start on Wednesday as first quarter GDP fell 1.6%, revised down from 1.5% reflecting the most recent lockdown. Trading in Asia was mixed with China’s SE Composite index gaining 0.5% while Japan’s Nikkei was down 0.1%. Commodities were weaker with gold down 0.2% to $1,758 per ounce and Brent Crude was 0.1% lower at $74.7 a barrel. At 08:45 the FTSE 100 index of ...

The UK’s flagship stock market index finished in negative territory on Monday, with the FTSE 100 losing almost 1% to 7,073 after Europe introduced tougher curbs on UK travellers to stem the rising cases of the delta variant. The new restrictions put pressure on the airlines with EasyJet (EZJ) and Jet2 (JET2:AIM) declining by around 5% each. CORPORATE NEWS Luxury goods group Burberry ...

The new trading week got off to a disappointing start with the UK’s flagship stock market index in negative territory. Having initially seen modest gains on Monday morning, by midday the FTSE 100 had fallen 0.6% to 7,096, dragged down by weakness in banks and oil producers. Brent Crude oil dipped 0.3% to $75.98 per barrel while gold also eased back by the same percentage points to trade at ...

London’s FTSE 100 fell modestly in early dealings on Monday, off 0.2% at 7,120.61 by 8.45 am, as the spread of more transmissible forms of the virus that causes Covid-19, both at home and abroad, tempered global recovery hopes. Brent crude oil prices held firm above $76 per barrel while gold nudged 0.1% ahead to $1,784 per ounce. Higher oil prices, a major cost, together with fading hopes ...

Recently there has been a lot of attention on the ‘growth’ versus ‘value’ debate and the thinking behind each investment style. The successful development of Covid vaccines in November 2020 sparked an apparent rotation out of more expensive stocks which are growing their earnings rapidly and consistently into more attractively valued shares which are benefiting from pandemic ...

UK stocks began the week on a positive mood with the FSTE 100 index hitting a new post-pandemic high of 7,188 in early trading, lifted by gains in oil majors Royal Dutch Shell (RDSB) and BP (BP.) which more than offset losses for airlines and hotel firms. By the close the benchmark had retraced to 7,147, up 13 points or 0.2%, ahead of a government press conference which was widely expected to ...

UK stocks began the week with new highs for the FTSE 100, helped by gains in oil majors Royal Dutch Shell (RDSB) and BP (BP.) which more than offset losses for airlines and hotel firms. By midday the FTSE 100 was up 30 points or 0.4% to 7,165, just shy of its mid-morning print of 7,188, a new 12-month post-pandemic high. Brent crude prices traded 1% higher to $73.4 a barrel, near the ...

Shares in outsourcing firm Serco (SRP) jumped 4% to 141p after it raised its forecast for full-year underlying trading profit due to a better than expected performance in the first five months of the year. Commenting on current trading, the firm said all four of its divisions were in line with or ahead of their budgets up to the end of May, with volumes in Testing and Tracing particularly ...

UK stocks made a positive start to the week on Monday helped by solid gains in oil shares Royal Dutch Shell (RDSB) and BP (BP.) which lifted the FTSE 100 by 48 points or 0.7% to a new 12-month post-pandemic high of 7,182 points. Brent crude prices traded 1% higher to $73.4 a barrel, near the year’s highs as the global economic recovery boosted prices. Last week Goldman Sachs raised its target ...

There has been a wave of takeover approaches for listed companies, both from rivals and from private equity buy-out firms in 2021. Something we have noticed is that, where private equity is concerned, rather than looking for companies which are on their knees and in desperate need of turning round, buyers seem to prefer companies which have already begun the turnaround process and therefore ...