WH Smith: High-flyer divides City April 24, 2019 | City Talk By Graeme Evans from interactive investor. Latest results are fuel for another assault on a record high. Here’s why Smith splits the Square Mile. With £1 billion worth of dividends or buybacks since 2007, WH Smith (LSE:SMWH) shareholders can have few complaints about the retailer’s tried and tested strategy when it comes to selling stationery, [...]
The coming squeeze on US profits April 24, 2019 | City Talk Progress on US-China trade talks has seen investors’ concerns about a trade war fade, and be replaced instead by worries about economic growth and politic risks. The real concern for equity investors, ultimately, is how slower growth will be reflected in company profits. In 2018 markets were driven by stronger corporate earnings, but share prices [...]
A year of two halves? April 23, 2019 | Sponsored Alex Crooke, Fund Manager of the Bankers Investment Trust, explains how the team is preparing for a different investment landscape in the second half of 2019. It’s in our nature as fund managers to continually contemplate about the future, but the level and scope of uncertainty facing investors today is almost unprecedented. What’s disappointing is [...]
Mike Ashley among Debenhams shareholders wiped out April 18, 2019 | City Talk By Graeme Evans from interactive investor. One of the most intriguing City soap operas is over for investors as lenders seize control of Debenhams. The fight for survival at Debenhams (LSE:DEB) stores goes on, but for investors the suspension of shares signalled the final act in a grim 13 years of stock market trading. The [...]
The fault in default funds: Why you might not be getting the most out of your workplace pension scheme April 17, 2019 There is no denying that auto-enrolment is paving the way for the British population to have a half-decent savings pot in retirement. According to recent figures from the Office for National Statistics, 76 per cent of UK employees were members of a workplace pension scheme in 2018, up slightly from the 73 per cent enrolled [...]
Asset management firms urged to increase stewardship efforts April 16, 2019 Asset management firms have been urged to increase the level of engagement and guidance with the firms they invest in. Institutional investors only have “one-hand” on the wheel in regards to stewardship, advisory firm Willis Towers Watson warned in a report published today. Read more: Tatton Asset Management shares plummet as consulting arm under pressure The [...]
Tatton Asset Management shares plummet as consulting arm under pressure April 16, 2019 Shares in Tatton Asset Management fell 12 per cent this morning despite increasing assets and inflows as the firm reported that its consulting arm faced downward pressure on revenue. Assets under management soared 24.5 per cent to £6.1bn in the financial year, growing seven per cent in the six months to the end of March [...]
City of London Investment Group boosts funds by 14 per cent April 16, 2019 City of London Investment Group announced that funds under management jumped 14 per cent in the first quarter of 2019 to £4.1bn. The group reported funds under management of £4.1bn, an increase from the £3.6bn recorded at the end of last year. Read more: Emerging markets shake City of London Investment profits The asset management [...]
Tesco and Dunelm defy retail gloom April 16, 2019 | City Talk By Graeme Evans from interactive investor. Impressive updates from Tesco and Dunelm show opportunities still exist in the embattled retail sector. A big hike in the Tesco (LSE:TSCO) dividend and an “incredible” trading update from Dunelm Group (LSE:DNLM) today combined to remind Brexit-weary investors there is life in the retail sector after all. The near-doubling [...]
Best 25 stocks in the last tax year April 15, 2019 | City Talk By Graeme Evans from interactive investor. The FTSE 100 outperformed mid-caps last tax year, but the top FTSE 350 performers might surprise you. Take a look at the financial year ended on the 5th April, with the 25 top performing stocks in the FTSE 350 all producing gains of 40 per cent or more over the [...]