We’ve all been buying fridges, wine and sparkly tops this year, judging by how the market has rewarded certain retail stocks. There has been a lot of chatter about how alcohol sales have increased during lockdown, so it’s no surprise to see online specialist Naked Wines (WINE:AIM) become the second best retail stock in share price terms year-to-date. Boohoo’s (BOO:AIM) ongoing success ...

The FTSE 100 opened on the back foot Wednesday, falling 1.2% to 6,249 after a spike in coronavirus cases across the globe compounded fears of a second wave. In overnight trading China’s Shanghai Composite nudged up 0.3% while Japan’s Nikkei 225 index slipped 0.2%. Brent Oil prices were 0.6% lower at $42.4 dollars a barrel and Gold prices were slightly higher at $1,769 an ounce. The pound ...

While no firm wants to be seen publicly to be ‘having a good crisis’, given the gravity of the threat to the economy and public health from coronavirus, the fact is some firms are doing rather well despite, or in some cases as a result of, the pandemic. Some have been in the right place at the right time – think of healthcare, sanitation and hygiene firms – while others have been less ...

UK markets regathered momentum to accelerate gains in afternoon trading after a firm start on Wall Street. Both the Dow Jones and S&P 500 rose more than 1.5% early in the Thursday session, although the tech heavy Nasdaq made more modest progress. Earlier in the day the UK government extended its Bank of England overdraft so it can borrow billions of pounds and bypass the bond market. The ...

Online wines retailer Naked Wines (WINE:AIM) saw its share price rally more than 12% to 306.5p after revealing a surge in demand during the coronavirus lockdown. The company now expects to beat its previous 2020 sales forecast. Since restrictions on social gathering began Naked Wines, the online business developed by Majestic Wine before the chain was sold last year, has seen higher levels ...

London’s FTSE 100 gave up 49.2 points to trade at 7,213.3 early on Thursday with investors growing tired of the lack of progress with US/China trade talks and the Federal Reserve’s latest meeting minutes showed it is in no hurry to make further interest rate cuts in the US. CENTRICA REMAINS ON TRACK Unloved energy giant Centrica (CAN) rallied 4.5% to 75.96p after leaving its full year ...

Shares in Majestic Wine (WINE:AIM) jumped 1% to 262p on news that its physical stores had been sold to private equity group Fortress for £95m. A separate sale of one freehold property will realise a further £5m subject to it receiving planning approval for the redevelopment of the site. If the sale is voted through the transaction will represent a coup for Naked Wine boss Rowan ...

UK stocks trade higher on Thursday, pushing to their best level in a month with the FTSE 100 index up 0.3% to 7,390 thanks to strength in construction, industrial and technology stocks. Best performer in the FTSE is plumbing supplies company Ferguson (FERG), up 6% to £56.34 after it emerges that US activist investor Nelson Peltz has taken a 6% stake in the firm. Peltz’s stake, valued at ...

Shares in Majestic Wine (WINE:AIM) have slumped 7.7% to 293.5p in early trade on Thursday despite progress on the sale of its physical stores. Alongside in line full year results the £213m wine seller confirmed ‘advanced discussions’ with ‘multiple bidders’ as it seeks to sell its retail and commercial arms and focus on the faster growing online sale of wines through its Naked Wines ...

Activist investor Gatemore Capital Management has acquired a 9.57% stake in struggling, lately unloved high street suit hire specialist Moss Bros (MOSB). News of the stake may spur on expectations of an activist campaign from Gatemore, although according to a source close to the asset manager cited by Sky News, it has yet to engage with management. Gatemore’s arrival on the share register ...

Shares in fishing tackle and equipment retailer Angling Direct (ANG:AIM) leap 10.4% higher to 74.5p on news of a record start to the financial year. Commentators may carp on about a UK retail sector in distress, but Angling Direct is confounding the wider doom and gloom with like-for-like sales growing strongly as it consolidates a resilient niche market. READ MORE ABOUT ANGLING DIRECT HERE ...

The retail and leisure sectors are full of companies with accounting red flags, according to investment bank Liberum which has screened for future business risks by looking at profit smoothing, working capital, cash uses and governance issues. It declares Domino’s Pizza (DOM) to have the biggest red flag when it comes to looking at one-off items in financial results, often called exceptional ...

Retailer Majestic Wine (WINE:AIM) has announced a radical new transformation plan that could potentially see it become a pure online player, prompting analysts to downgrade earnings and sending its share price lower. The company is to ramp up investment behind its online Naked Wines business which it acquired in 2015 and adopt that brand as the new group name. It will spend an extra £6m a ...

Retailer Majestic Wine (WINE:AIM) has uncorked an unexpected strategy change that is unsettling investors and sends shares in the Watford-headquartered quality wine specialist down 9.4% to 245.5p. Ramping up investment behind Naked Wines - which will become the group’s new moniker - Majestic is also mulling over options including store closures or the wholesale disposal of its legacy retail ...

European and Asian markets are weak on Monday after US data on Friday sparked fears of a global economic slowdown. The Japanese and Chinese benchmarks are down by 3% and 2% respectively and US futures are pointing to further weakness when the market opens later today. The FTSE 100 index is caught up in the sell-off, losing 0.5% to 7,170 points with miners Antofagasta (ANTO) and Evraz (EVR) and ...

London’s FTSE 100 advances by 64 points to 6,923, the blue chip benchmark now trading at its highest level since the start of December as the market does its best to climb out of a hole. Housebuilders, tobacco stocks, miners, engineers and retailers all look strong on Wednesday. Hopes of progress with US-China trade talks are certainly giving markets support, so too a lack of major shocks among ...

Majestic Wine (WINE:AIM) 301.5p Loss to date: 20% (stopped out) Original entry point: Buy at 433.5p, 9 Aug 2018 Unfortunately, our bullish summer call on quality wine specialist Majestic Wine (WINE:AIM) hasn’t worked out, the shares triggering our stop loss on news (22 Nov) of a 63% decline in half year adjusted pre-tax profit to £2.5m. Our hopes that the extended summer heatwave ...

Shares in Majestic Wine (WINE) slump 18% to a 12-month low of 305p as the company reports a 62% drop in pre-tax profits for the first half of the year. The sharp drop in profits comes as Majestic ramps up its investment spend at Naked Wines to increase customer numbers. What it calls ‘new customer investment’ is up 60% on the first half of last year at nearly £8m. This spending strategy ...

A prolonged heatwave has provided BBQ weather and the perfect balmy evening conditions for imbibing Prosecco and chardonnay, weather which should prove beneficial for AIM-quoted stalwart Majestic Wine (WINE:AIM). Buy ahead of half year results (22 Nov), where forecasts could be upgraded given a trading boost from hotter temperatures and positive progress with international sales and profitable ...

There’s a major business shake-up underway at Rolls-Royce (RR.) as the FTSE 100 aero-engineer confirms that it will cut 4,600 jobs as part of a plan to simplify its business and save £400m a year by the end of 2020. Those hoped-for streamlined costs go down well with investors, sending the stock more than 3% higher in early trade on Thursday to 854p, topping the FTSE 100 leader ...