magazine archive
magazine archive
Week Ahead
Market volatility distracts investors from the bigger picture
Thursday 25 Jul 2024Last week, investors were given a reminder that stocks can go down as well as up, as the disclaimer says, but also what goes up, i.e. central bank interest rates, doesn’t necessarily come down as quickly as they might like. The European Central Bank’s rate-setting meeting was a case in point –...
Can Procter & Gamble raise earnings guidance again?
Thursday 25 Jul 2024Given that the American consumer is buckling under the strain of sticky inflation and high interest rates, Procter & Gamble’s (PG:NYSE) organic sales growth performance and forward guidance will be closely monitored when the consumer products powerhouse posts fourth quarter earnings (30 July)...
Data keeps traders guessing as to timing and scope of rate cuts
Thursday 18 Jul 2024They say a week is a long time in politics, but even a day can be a long time in the markets as we found out on Tuesday. After last week’s lower-than-expected June US inflation print, traders loaded up on bets the Federal Reserve would start lowing interest rates to the point where a 25 basis point...
2024 has seen quite a revival of fortunes for consumer goods giant Unilever
Thursday 18 Jul 2024After a positive first-quarter trading update which helped power the shares to a 16% gain year-to-date all eyes are on Unilever’s (ULVR) first-half update on 25 July. In the three months to March, the group reported 4.4% underlying sales growth with a positive performance in all five divisions led...
Microsoft primed to kick-start Big Tech earnings season
Thursday 18 Jul 2024The starting gun has sounded for the second-quarter US earnings season but expect the excitement level to climb next week when big tech firms start reporting, with Microsoft (MSFT:NASDAQ) among the first out of the gate on 23 July. These results will be crucial as there’s a great deal riding on...
Markets react well to election results while US jobs figures go largely unnoticed
Thursday 11 Jul 2024With the UK general election playing out as expected last week the stock market responded positively, especially the more domestically-focused FTSE 250 mid-cap index which notched up a 2.5% gain over five days. Interestingly, it wasn’t housebuilders which led the gains – despite much talk of Labour...
Focus on profitability as Netflix readies second-quarter earnings
Thursday 11 Jul 2024Streaming firm Netflix (NFLX:NASDAQ) is set to announce its second-quarter earnings (18 July) with the shares having been buoyed year-to-date by continuing signs the company’s shift in strategy is working. All the evidence to date suggests the company’s crackdown on password sharing has been a...
Can QinetiQ revive its US business and what is the outlook for defence spending in the UK?
Thursday 11 Jul 2024Tech-oriented defence firm QinetiQ (QQ.) is scheduled to report on its first-quarter performance on 18 July amid robust demand across the industry backed by global geopolitical tensions. This was reflected in a strong set of results for the 12 months to 31 March – with revenue and earnings ahead of...
PepsiCo under pressure to pep up its performance
Thursday 04 Jul 2024Short-term concerns over slower growth in the US, where the consumer is feeling the inflationary pinch, and the potential negative long-term impact of anti-obesity drugs on demand for sugary snacks and drinks mean PepsiCo’s (PEP:NASDAQ) shares have lacked fizz over the past year. As such, investors...
Barratt Developments to direct attention back to the housing market
Thursday 04 Jul 2024While the shares prices of many housebuilders are still well below where they were pre-pandemic, so are their earnings which means although the sector may look cheap at first glance it could be a classic ‘value trap’ instead. In the case of Barratt Developments (BDEV) , whose shares are still...