There has never been a better time to be an income investor in UK equities, as payouts for the period from April to June hit an all-time quarterly record of £36.7 billion according to the latest Dividend Monitor from Computershare.Most of the increase was thanks to one-off special dividends, leaving the underlying growth rate at just 1%, but for those clipping the coupons or reinvesting the incom

Deal priced at a 53% premiumNews caps stunning Ascential returns this yearStrong strategic logic behind takeoverAfter a remarkable start to the year in terms of shareholder returns, investors in events and analysis firm Ascential (ASCL) woke to the news today that the board had agreed a £1.2 billion conditional bid for the company from rival Informa (INF).Ascential shares jumped 116p or 26% to 56

London?s FTSE 100 rose on Thursday morning, despite doubts over the timing of US Federal Reserve interest rate cuts still lingering, while gold reached another record high.The FTSE 100 index opened up 18.52 points, 0.2%, at 7,955.96. The FTSE 250 was up 34.02 points, 0.2%, at 19,787.66, and the AIM All-Share was up 0.82 of a point, 0.1%, at 742.90.The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.3% at 795.53, the Cboe UK

Full year revenue up 13% to £206.4 million£450 million special dividend expectedShares up 18% over the past yearShares in Ascential (ASCL) were up nearly 3% to 307p in morning trading as the events outfit and information provider reported a 13% rise in revenue to £206.4 million for the year ending 31 December.Adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest taxation depreciation and amortisation) was

Metro Bank executives snap up sharesAscential CEO sells 300,000 sharesDarktrace CEO sells 100,000 sharesDaniel Frumkin, chief executive of Metro Bank (MTRO),bought 5,833,333 shares for a total value of £1,750,000 in this week's capital raise by the 'challenger' financial.Chief financial officer James Hopkins subscribed for 200,000 shares for a total value of £60,000 in the same placing.Metro Ban

The market is reacting extremely positively to news of events outfit and information provider Ascential's (ASCL) sale of its digital commerce and product design businesses for a combined £1.4 billion.The digital commerce unit is being offloaded to Omnicom (OMC:NYSE) for £741 million and WGSN - its product design arm - to Apax Partners for £700 million. Group CEO Duncan Painter is leaving to joi

Combined value of disposals £1.4 billion£850 million to be returned to shareholdersAscential to focus on events onlyShares in Ascential (ASCL) were initially up 35% to 292p in morning trading as the specialist information, analytics, and ecommerce optimisation company said it was selling its digital commerce and product design business for a total of £1.4 billion to advertising group Omnicom (O

Stock prices in London were up at midday on Monday ahead of this week's central bank decisions in Japan, the US and the UK, and amid the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.The FTSE 100 index was up 62.88 points, 0.9%, at 7,354.16. The FTSE 250 was up 165.83 points, 1.0%, at 17,032.25, and the AIM All-Share was up 4.97 points, 0.7%, at 679.43.The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.8% at 733.40, the Cboe UK 250

Keystone events drive first-half incomeOperating earnings turn positiveNews expected on strategic reviewShares in information, analytics and events firm Ascential (ASCL) jumped as much as 12% to 213p in early trading following the release of better-than-expected first-half results which saw operating profit swing back into the black.Management also promised an update on 'strategic actions to maxim

- Sales and profit to be above top end of market forecasts- Separation of businesses planned, US listing- Timing of transactions subject to market conditionsShares in specialist information, analytics, and ecommerce optimisation company Ascential (ASCL) jumped 25% after it gave investors the pleasant shock that 2022 sales and profit will be above top of the range analyst forecasts.The company also

The idea behind value investing is to buy shares for less than they are worth in the hope they reach their so-called 'fair' value and generate a better than market return.This article explores popular yardsticks used to find value shares, explains how they are used and highlights the advantages and drawbacks.Before starting it is worth bearing in mind that none of the metrics discussed are perfect

With engineering software company Aveva (AVV) poised to exit the stock market thanks to a takeover, it will mean losing the UK's largest 'tech' firm by market value, at £9.15 billion.Aveva has been majority owned by French industrial group Schneider Electric (SU:EPA) since 2017 and this shareholder now wants the whole business.That's a slightly different bid situation to most of the other tech ta

Shares in specialist information and analytics company Ascential (ASCL) rose 4.4% following the announcement management was considering a demerger and US listing for its digital operations.Such businesses tend to be given a higher value by US equity markets so moving to a New York listing could trigger a considerable re-rating for Ascential's digital business.FOCUS ON SHAREHOLDER VALUEThe potentia

London's FTSE 100 finished Monday's session 0.56% higher at 7,068.43 points as a risk appetite rebound took oil prices higher and drove demand for index heavyweights Royal Dutch Shell (RDSB) and BP (BP.), shares in both improving by more than 2% to £14.57 and 302.3p respectively.Amid the FTSE 250 ranks, low-cost airline EasyJet (EZJ) fell 14% to 586.4p on a UBS downgrade, having announced a £1.2

Reports that the Post Office has inked a deal to deliver for Amazon helped push Royal Mail (RMG) to the top of the FTSE 100 leaderboard on Monday.By midday, the blue chip benchmark was up 0.8% at 7,086.07 points.Amid the FTSE 250 ranks, low-cost airline EasyJet (EZJ) fell 14% to 587p on a UBS downgrade, having announced a £1.2 billion rights issue last week.MARKET NEWSShares in specialist science

UK stocks recovered from Friday's losses in early trading, despite weakness in US markets at the end of last week and a fall in Asian equity markets.All three major US indices fell on Friday after a court ruling was seen as negative for heavyweight tech stock Apple. Meanwhile, the Hang Seng and Shanghai Composite indices were pulled lower by concerns of greater Chinese regulation of tech stocks i

Media group Ascential (ASCL) only nudged 0.5% higher to 422p on the $122 million acquisition of a majority stake in digital content optimisation play ASR Group, but the deal could have more significance than the share price move suggests over time.Under the terms of the transaction, Ascential will take an initial 51% stake with an option to acquire two further 24.5% stakes in the company based on

London's FTSE 100 jumped towards that all-important 7,000 mark on Thursday following strong economic data from the US, while pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) also helped the index with a big rise after reports that an activist investor has built up a stake in the business.The UK's benchmark index closed 0.63% higher to 6,983.50, with investors closely watching to see if can finally claw

UK stocks continued their strong run throughout morning trading on Thursday, boosted by gains in heavyweight mining stocks, while Deliveroo (ROO) posted a jump in first quarter orders.The benchmark FTSE 100 rose 0.52% to 6,970 by 12pm, with miners providing the biggest boost to the index as they tracked higher metal prices.FTSE 100 mining stalwarts Anglo American (AAL), BHP (BHP) and Rio Tinto (RI

UK stocks got off to a steady start on Thursday, boosted by gains in heavyweight mining stocks, while Deliveroo (ROO) posted a jump in first quarter orders. The benchmark FTSE 100 rose 0.3% in early deals, hitting 6,960.85, with miners providing the biggest boost to the index as they tracked higher metal prices.Investors will be closely watching the FTSE 100 to see if it has the momentum to finall