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Be prepared for wave of going concern warnings
Thursday 04 Jun 2020UK finance regulators are reportedly braced for a wave of listed companies to issue warnings about their ability to survive the coronavirus pandemic, which could see share prices plummet. According to a report in the Financial Times , auditors have warned there is a backlog of annual reports from...
Are we through the worst of the crisis?
Thursday 04 Jun 2020While it’s too early to say the economic recovery is under way, it’s possible we have seen the worst readings in terms of industrial confidence in Europe and Asia. This week analytics and information firm IHS Markit published its widely-followed industrial purchasing managers index ( PMI ) surveys...
Nifty footwork from Boohoo floors short seller
Thursday 04 Jun 2020An entertaining if brief dust-up between AIM online fashion firm Boohoo.com ( BOO:AIM ) and short seller ShadowFall Research, ultimately saw the former prevail. However, even if strong growth is being forecast, we think investors should steer clear of the stock on valuation grounds. Based on...
Investors warned to watch balance sheet strength
Thursday 28 May 2020Investors are once again being warned to carefully vet potential company share purchases for balance sheet strength. A new study has shown that the average position on borrowings for FTSE 100 companies is worse now than during the credit crunch a decade ago. The financial health check report,...
Frontier Developments upgrades earnings guidance for second time
Thursday 28 May 2020While most sectors of the economy have been coming to a standstill during lockdown, the gaming sector has seen a significant boost in business, driven by an increase in the number of people playing video games while stuck at home. On 20 May Frontier Developments ( FDEV:AIM ) upgraded earnings...
Consumer stocks rally on lockdown easing hopes
Thursday 28 May 2020Hopes of a return to a ‘new normal’ saw consumer-facing stocks stage a significant rally as the UK announced plans for reopening of retail businesses. This news, combined with an update on another potential vaccine – developed by US firm Novavax – and a plan approved by chancellor Rishi Sunak to...
Why has the FTSE found it hard to push ahead in the past six weeks?
Thursday 28 May 2020For 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...
Imperial Brands still offers 9% yield despite dividend cut
Thursday 21 May 2020Cigarette maker Imperial Brands ( IMB ) has cut its 2020 dividend by a third as it tries to find ways to reduce debt pressures amid the coronavirus crisis and a poor showing for sales of its next generation vaping products. This represented the first time the company had failed to increase, let...
Big shake-up with fund managers at Invesco, Allianz and Marlborough
Thursday 21 May 2020It’s been a week of big changes in the UK fund management industry with the departure of several high-profile managers including Mark Barnett from Invesco who has struggled with a long period of underperformance. The Invesco High Income (B8N46L7) and Invesco UK Income (B8N46V7) funds, which Barnett...
Vaccine progress lifts stocks as investors look for route out of crisis
Thursday 21 May 2020The market mood is being lifted both by countries’ emergence from lockdown and from progress towards a vaccine for the coronavirus – offering a potential route out of the crisis. While historically vaccines have taken years to develop, events are moving fast as healthcare companies throw...