Shares in private equity investment trust Oakley Capital Investments (OCI), edged higher following the announcement of a $35 million investment in Seedtag, a leader in contextual advertising in EMEA and Latin America.This deal is in line with Oakley's focus on areas with structural growth prospects. Oakley is focused on three sectors: technology, education and consumer.It targets businesses and su

Investors often look for certain attributes when researching stocks to help spot the most attractive opportunities.The list of desirable factors can include an improvement in a company's financial position, operational efficiency gains, niche skills with limited competition, and underappreciated assets which means a company could be considerably more attractive than its headline valuation implies.

UK stocks dropped on Wednesday as investors awaited news from the latest US Federal Reserve meeting for clues on its future interest rate policy after recent market worries over rising inflation.Both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 indices traded lower, adding to the selling pressure on the FTSE where gains in financials were offset by weakness in mining and energy shares.At the close the benchmark ind

UK stocks dropped on Wednesday as gains in financials were offset by weakness in mining and energy shares. At midday the FTSE 100 index of leading shares was down 35 points or 0.5% to 6,768 points.Overnight trading in Asia was quiet with the Nikkei 225 and SE Composite indices slightly down.Investors are awaiting news from the latest US Federal Reserve meeting later today for clues on future inter

UK telco BT (BT.A) shot to the top of the FTSE 100 leaderboard after securing vital new UK mobile spectrum for its 5G rollout strategy. The stock jumped more than 5% in early trading to 150.42p after the company said its EE mobile business had won 80MHz of 5G spectrum following an Ofcom auction.BT splashed out a total of £452 million on the extra spectrum, about a third of the approximate £1.36

UK stocks dropped on Wednesday as weak mining and energy shares dragged offset by gains in financials.Overnight trading in Asia was quiet with the Nikkei 225 and SE Composite indices slightly down.Investors are awaiting news from the latest US Federal Reserve meeting later today for clues on future interest rate policy given recent market worries over rising inflation.5G CAPACITY BOOSTTelecoms gia

Foreign exchange and payments group Alpha FX (AFX:AIM) reported interim revenues 16% higher to £18 million for the period ended 30 June, while operating profits dipped 5% to £5.9 million after charging a £0.5 million provision. The shares gained 3.4% to 920p.RESILIENT PERFORMANCEThe core UK market which represents two thirds of the business experienced some delays from clients during lockdown r

Shares in outsourcer Serco (SRP) surged 16% to 155p after the firm reinstated its full year earnings guidance in an unscheduled trading update.The company brought forward its closed period update 'as a consequence of the board reviewing the latest management forecasts and determining that it is in a position to reinstate guidance for the 2020 financial year.'The stock exchange requires firms to ma

Fantasy miniature wargames manufacturer Games Workshop (GAW) reported a stronger than expected recovery since re-opening operations, giving the shares a 10% boost to £78, trading within a whisker of the all-time high.BIG UPGRADES TO COMEToday's announcement is quite extraordinary given current limited manufacturing capacity and that around 43% of retail stores are still closed around the globe.Th

Shares in manufacturer Johnson Matthey (JMAT) dropped 2.3% to £21.40 after the company halved its dividend, its first cut since the 1980s.Blaming current uncertainty due to the coronavirus pandemic, Johnson Matthey has proposed a final dividend of 31.125p per share for its 2019/20 financial year, which is half the payout of its 2018/19 final dividend.The decision, ending a streak of increases tha

London's FTSE opened lower on Thursday as the UK government prepared to lift the two metre distancing rule in a bid to boost the economy.The blue chip benchmark's jittery start followed the US Federal Reserve's June FOMC meeting yesterday, where chairman Jerome Powell announced the FOMC expects there to be no rate increases until 2022 and forecast that the US economy will contract by 6.5% in 2020,

Paris based diagnostics firm Novacyt (NYCT:AIM) said it had received total sales worth £40m as of 1 June and had a further £80m of contracted orders.However, shares dropped 7% to 312p on disappointment that France's public health body had not approved the test for reimbursement.Despite receiving clinical approval on 6 April from the Institut Pasteur, the internationally renowned centre for biome

The decision by FTSE 100 companies Compass (CPG) and Whitbread (WTB) to let the general public take part in their gigantic fundraisings is significant for retail investors.Hundreds of companies this year have issued new shares at a discount to the market price in order to boost their balance sheets during the crisis. The majority of these fundraisings have been restricted to institutional investor

Shares in budget airline Ryanair (RYA) soared 9.5% to €9.25 after its full year results showed it has gone into the coronavirus crisis on the back of big rises in revenue and profit.In its full year results to 31 March, Ryanair reported a 13% jump in profit after tax to €1bn and a 10% increase in revenue to €8.49bn, having flown 4% more passengers with a total of 148.6m during the y

Shares in web-based white goods retailer AO World (AO.) cheapened 3% to 83p on Tuesday, despite news that the Bolton-headquartered company had increased sales and grown market share since COVID-19 lockdown measures went into effect.The shares had ticked higher in recent sessions, with investors possibly anticipating lockdown-induced forecast upgrades for the online laptops-to-TVs seller.News that

Shares in FTSE 100 car insurer Admiral (ADM) gained 1.7% to £23.46, inching towards their pre-coronavirus highs, despite the firm bowing to pressure from the regulator to postpone its special dividend payment.In an update on its progress during the crisis, the company said that in line with guidance from the Prudential Regulatory Authority (PRA) that insurers act with 'restraint' on payout, the b

Shares in budget airline Wizz Air (WIZZ) gained 1.3% to £27.72 after it stuck to its full year profit guidance, despite being hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic.In a post-close trading statement, the Hungarian low-cost carrier said it expects to report underlying net profit of €350-355m for the year to 31 March 2020.That's despite March 2020 traffic being down 34% year-on-year and the airl

Shares in construction-equipment rental firm Speedy Hire (SDY) gained 2.5% to 56.5p after it released an update on current trading and measures it has taken to mitigate the impact of coronavirus.The firm noted that the virus 'had an impact on trading towards the end of March 2020, with some business areas operating at reduced activity levels', but that cash collections last month were still strong

Shares in online fashion retailer ASOS (ASC:AIM) rallied 39% to £21.68 on Wednesday on refinancing-driven relief and better-than-expected half year results issued after yesterday's market close, which showed continued sales momentum and a payoff from operational improvements in the business.However, the encouraging numbers were largely overshadowed by a £247m placing and debt refinancing to bols

FTSE lost steam on Wednesday as mounting global deaths from coronavirus took its toll on sentiment with new cases reported in China. The FTSE 100 index lost 1.3% to 5,362.16 points.Overnight trading across Asia was mixed with China's SSE index down 0.2% while Japan's Nikkei 225 index closed up 2%,Brent Oil crude prices were 1% firmer at $24.8 and Gold prices nudged up 0.2% to $1,651 while the pou