Stock prices in London opened mixed on Thursday while European counterparts were in the green, amid news that the UK economy flatlined monthly in June amid investor caution before the general election in July.The FTSE 100 index opened up 8.31 points, or 0.1%, at 8,289.36. The FTSE 250 was down 41.98 points, or 0.2%, at 20,910.54, and the AIM All-Share was down 0.87 points, or 0.1%, at 770.64.The C

Investment conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.B:NYSE) attracts investor interest in the companies it is buying and selling that is revealed through quarterly 13F filings.These are a regulatory requirement for all firms with more than $100 million in assets under management. At last count on 14 August the publicly traded portfolio was worth $348 billion.In addition the firm holds a record $147 bi

Soft-drinks giant Coca-Cola (KO:NYSE) releases third quarter earnings on 24 October with consensus earnings per share expected to be flat against the prior year at $0.69.The company raised annual sales and profit guidance on 26 July after beating analysts' second quarter estimates. Over the last four quarters Coca-Cola has beaten market forecasts by an average of around 5%.This time though there a

Two surprisingly positive readings on the strength of the US economy bolstered Wall Street overnight and were lifting European shares early Wednesday, with the dollar also on the rise.The FTSE 100 index opened up 24.35 points, or 0.3%, at 7,485.33. The FTSE 250 was up 86.64 points, or 0.5%, at 18,141.48. The AIM All-Share was down 0.27 of a point at 755.34, however.The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.3% at 7

Moneysupermarket could be in demandConsumers are increasingly looking to switch products and economise where they canGiven there has been no sign of a let-up in the ongoing cost-of-living crisis, we suspect price comparison website operator Moneysupermarket.com (MONY) would have had a strong final quarter in 2022.At the nine-month stage, growth was already ahead of expectations, especially in its

The turmoil in the UK market and across Europe has not been replicated to the same extent on Wall Street, even if US stocks did touch their lowest levels since December 2020 on 26 September. The Bank of England's intervention in the gilt market helped calm investors' nerves but the risks of contagion from the ongoing crisis in the UK means sentiment remains pretty jittery.There's little question a

- Discount book and toy seller has restored profitability and dividends- Encourages with news of strong recent trading- Retailer remains cautious over consumer outlookShares in The Works (WRKS) jumped more than 50% to 44p after the cut-price book, toy and arts and crafts retailer reported solid annual results showing good growth in sales and profits ahead of pre-Covid levels in the face of falling

The summer holiday season is upon us, and those who are brave enough to be risking travel disruption in search of more exotic climes will no doubt be thinking about what reading material to pack for whiling away the hours on the beach, or in the airport departure lounge.An engrossing bestseller will often be the order of the day, but if you don't want to switch your brain off entirely, and would l

Are you looking for the next big thing? Rather than risk all your money on a single stock, intellectual property investor IP Group (IPO) will give you exposure to a portfolio of promising companies, each with a bright idea and the potential to make big money in the future.Not everything will be a success in its portfolio, but it only needs a handful of winners each year to make shareholders happy.

A key point of difference for investment trusts compared with other types of fund is they often trade at a premium or discount to the valuation of the assets they hold.A particularly interesting situation to keep tabs on is where relationship between the share price and the net asset value of a trust is significantly out of kilter with its longer-term average.SCREENING THE UNIVERSEUsing data from

Picking individual shares can be a good investment strategy for an experienced investor who has a strong understanding of the stock market and has the time to do their own research.But none of us can get it right all the time and even investors like Alan from Fife, who has been investing since the 1970s, can sometimes make mistakes.He has been able to pick some winning shares with pharmaceutical g

UK stocks ended the last full day of trading of 2020 in the red after the Government placed large swathes of the country under the tightest restrictions with three-quarters of England in tier four and almost all the rest in tier three from tomorrow.Parliament passed the necessary legislation to ratify the Brexit deal announced on Christmas Eve.The FTSE 100 index of leading stocks closed 0.71% lowe

UK stocks dipped into negative territory at midday Wednesday in quiet trading ahead of the last session of the year. Parliament was recalled for an emergency session to approve the Brexit deal ahead of the deadline.The pound gained almost 1% against the US dollar to trade at $1.36 and Brent crude prices were also 1% ahead at $51.6 a barrel.At 12pm the FTSE 100 index of leading stocks was 0.1% lowe

UK shares made small gains in early trading on Wednesday while European markets took a step back after overnight weakness in US, Asian and Indian technology stocks following their record run this year.A fall in the dollar also drove investors to sell US stocks and helped lift defensive assets including gold, which rose to $1,881 per ounce pre-market.At 8.30am the FTSE 100 index of leading stocks w

From a human standpoint, 2020 has proved a shocker of a year, with the unforeseen pandemic wreaking havoc on health and the associated lockdowns precipitating a global economic downturn that may take years to battle back from.Yet paradoxically, 2020 has been anything but negative from a markets perspective, with equity indices roiled by the onset of the crisis then recovering strongly with a boost

At first glance AstraZeneca's (AZN) $39.4 billion takeover offer for immunology and rare diseases specialist Alexion looks to be opportunistic and financially sound, but investors initially marked its shares down by 6%.There are a couple of reasons for the negative reaction; firstly, investors have questioned why AstraZeneca needs to go down the mergers and acquisition route when it already boasts

One of the best performing global funds over the past three years has deep roots in the world of ESG (environmental, social and governance).Since the Baillie Gifford Positive Change Fund (BYVGKV5) emerged in January 2017 it has posted a 110% total return, versus 18.6% for the MSCI World index.The Baillie Gifford fund has even outperformed this year during the global markets sell-off, achieving 10.

The biotechnology sector has been in the doldrums relatively speaking over the last five years having under-performed the FTSE World index by 48% and the MSCI World HealthCare index by 39%.According to Bloomberg data the sector is trading on a one-year forward price-to-earnings (PE) multiple of just 9.9 times, the lowest in 25 years.We have delved into the issues that have been driving performance

American football may not be everyone's cup of tea but no less a figure than former Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson drew inspiration from a biography of the legendary Green Bay Packers coach Vince Lombardi.He shaped a small club in Wisconsin into the National Football League's dominant force, winning the first two Super Bowl championship games in the early 1960s, and leaving behind him bot

Despite potential looming gloom in the form of this week's UK jobs, retail and inflation data, as well as more possible news from the US-China trade war and Brexit, the FTSE 100 has made a strong start this morning.Investors appear somewhat optimistic with the UK's leading basket of stocks opening 0.6% higher at 7,297.32, while the FTSE 250 - considered more representative of the UK economy - also