magazine archive
magazine archive
Week Ahead
US listing reports dominate agenda as Ashtead preps its full-year numbers
Thursday 13 Jun 2024Equipment hire outfit Ashtead (AHT) is set to announce it’s results for the 12 months to 30 April 2024 amid swirling speculation it might consider shifting its primary listing to the US. Around 90% of its business is done in the US so there is logic to the move but if its motivation is to attract a...
Strong payrolls stymie chances of a summer rate cut from the Fed
Thursday 13 Jun 2024As we cautioned last week, the release of the US non-farm payroll figures often has the ability to move markets and last Friday’s data did just that. Rather than adding 175,000 jobs as the market expected, the US economy expanded fast enough in May to grow payrolls by 272,000, more than even the...
Nerves frayed as investors ponder Adobe’s AI promise
Thursday 06 Jun 2024After the AI (artificial intelligence) miss from Salesforce (CRM:NYSE) last week, the foreboding mood around Adobe (ADBE:NASDAQ) is almost tangible. Like many enterprise software firms, it has been happy to talk up the potential growth power-up of integrating AI across its suite, but if the proof...
Can Fuller's show further progress against a tough backdrop?
Thursday 06 Jun 2024The pub and hospitality sector continues to recover from the pandemic and inflationary pressures, and premium pub and hotel group Fuller Smith & Turner (FSTA) is due to update the market with full-year results to the end of March on 13 June. The shares are trading close to 12-month highs,...
Signs of slowing US inflation send stocks higher while UK data also pleases
Thursday 06 Jun 2024Markets ended last Friday in the green after the US April CPE (core personal expenditure) deflator rose by 2.7%, in line with expectations and lending support to the argument inflation is heading towards the Federal Reserve’s official 2% target even if there are a few bumps in the road. This week...
Falling UK inflation and rising consumer confidence are welcome developments
Thursday 30 May 2024Last week got off to a positive start on the economic front with the headline rate of UK inflation dropping to 2.3% in April, a whisker above expectations and the Bank of England’s official 2% target. The main driver of lower prices was the household energy cap, added to which goods price inflation...
Costco earnings and outlook in focus for signs of consumer strain
Thursday 23 May 2024When discount retailer Costco Wholesale (COST:NASDAQ) files its third-quarter earnings report next Thursday, 30 May, there is likely to be a great deal of interest in what the company has to say about consumer spending habits. Larger rival and retail bellwether Walmart (WMT:NYSE) reported its...
Has Auto Trader got gas in the tank for upgrades?
Thursday 23 May 2024It has been a fair while since investors last heard from Auto Trader (AUTO), the UK’s biggest digital automotive marketplace that allows users to buy and sell a range of vehicles. Steered by chief executive Nathan Coe, the FTSE 100 constituent motored in with forecast-beating first-half results...
Bank of England a step closer to cutting rates as it lowers inflation outlook
Thursday 16 May 2024As Dinah Washington used to sing, what a difference a day makes, although its relevance to central bank meetings and stock markets was probably the last thing on the great jazz musician's mind. While there was no change in official UK interest rates at the latest Bank of England MPC (Monetary...
Can Marks & Spencer deliver some more earnings magic?
Thursday 16 May 2024Retail bellwether Marks & Spencer (MKS) may need to deliver a modest ‘beat’ to the £679.8 million consensus pre-tax profit estimate, along with a reasonably confident outlook statement, when it serves up full-year results (22 May) if the foods-to-fashion giant is to sustain recent positive...