Ocado still the number one shortRetailers in general unlovedEnergy services stocks drilledShort-selling, or borrowing shares to sell in the hope of buying them back at a lower price, is not something most retail investors have the nerve or the skill-set to pull off as it requires a certain mindset and a willingness to tolerate heavy losses on occasion until your bets come right.For the pros, howev

Investment trusts have experienced challenges this year, with discounts remaining wide across various sectors and some consolidation occurring. However, certain trusts have performed well compared to both the wider market and their peer group. This article highlights the top performers across four of the Association of Investment Companies' most widely followed equity-facing sectors.GLOBALAn inves

It may not seem much to non-China watchers, but the Communist party's politburo has changed the wording of its stance on monetary policy for the first time since the 2007/8 financial crisis from 'prudent' to 'moderately loose'.Chinese and Hong Kong listed shares jumped, as did those of UK and European stocks which have large exposure to the region including miners Antofagasta (ANTO) and Rio Tinto

Fourth year of underperformanceConsumer brand exposure reducedTrain optimistic for better future returnsVeteran fund manager Nick Train, manager of the well-followed Finsbury Growth & Income Trust (FGT), insisted he is more enthused by the company's prospects than at 'any time this century', despite the company reporting a fourth consecutive year of underperformance versus the benchmark.Chairman S

Better-than-feared second quarterNew recovery strategy unveiled£40 million-cost saving initiativeQuintessentially British luxury brand Burberry (BRBY) topped the FTSE 250 leader board on 14 November, the out-of-fashion firm's shares rallying 14% to 835p as its second-quarter results beat gloomy expectations and new boss Joshua Schulman unveiled a turnaround strategy.A rumoured bid target for Ital

Takeover tilt by Italian rival expectedBurberry results due 14 NovemberAnalysts expect lurch into lossFirmly out of fashion with investors this year amid a slowdown in luxury goods demand, shares in Burberry (BRBY) rallied 2% to 822p on 11 November as excitement surrounding a bid from Italian outerwear rival Moncler (MONC:BIT) continued to build.According to correspondence viewed by The Mail on Su

A dividend is quite simply a portion of a company's earnings distributed to its investors.In the UK most companies pay two ordinary dividends per year, one at the half-way stage (the interim or first-half dividend) and one at the end of the year (the final dividend). Some UK firms pay quarterly dividends.Sometimes, companies will decide to pay a special dividend on a one-off basis if their earning

Stocks in Europe were higher at midday on Wednesday, recouping some of Tuesday's losses, despite heavy falls in Shanghai.The FTSE 100 index was up 21.49 points, 0.3%, at 8,212.10. The FTSE 250 was up 137.16 points, 0.7%, at 20,768.36, but the AIM All-Share rose 1.01 points, 0.1%, to 736.08.The Cboe UK 100 added 0.3% at 822.38, the Cboe UK 250 climbed 0.8% to 18,253.79, and the Cboe Small Companies

As Sabuhi Gard covers in a piece of news analysis this week, China-related stocks and funds are flying thanks to Beijing's announcement of a big stimulus package.However, there is one industry with ties to the world's second largest economy which is very much not joining in the party ? the car manufacturers.On 30 September, Stellantis (STLAM:BIT) ? one of the biggest European car producers compris

On 24 September, the PBOC (People's Bank of China) unveiled a major stimulus package to support economic growth, promote the expansion of consumption and investment and throw a lifeline to struggling industries and sectors.The central bank also announced a 800-billion-yuan ($114 billion) lending pool to help fund managers, insurers and brokers buy more stocks and initiate share buybacks.China's st

Stocks in Europe returned some of the prior day's gains on Friday, as sentiment took a knock from gloomy updates from FedEx and Mercedes.The FTSE 100 index was down 40.78 points, 0.5%, at 8,287.94, above early lows. The FTSE 250 slid 199.96 points, 0.9%, at 20,962.75, and the AIM All-Share eased 1.27 points, 0.2%, at 746.81.The Cboe UK 100 fell 0.5% to 829.89, the Cboe UK 250 dipped 1.0% to 18,479

Stock prices in Europe were in the red on Friday morning, despite the upbeat mood in New York after the Federal Reserve's 50 basis point rate cut earlier this week.The FTSE 100 index fell 36.33 points, 0.4%, at 8,292.39. The index is up around 0.2% so far this week. The FTSE 250 shed 86.37 points, 0.4%, at 21,076.34, and the AIM All-Share slipped 1.29 points, 0.2%, at 746.79.The Cboe UK 100 fell 0

Another year of above-average returns58th consecutive year of dividend growthLower annual feesThe popular City of London (CTY) investment trust delivered another year of outperformance and dividend growth, marking 58 consecutive years of increases, the longest record in the AIC's (Association of Investment Companies) list of Dividend Heroes.The shares traded down 1.65p or 0.37% to 439.9p, but are

At the start of 2024, I speculated that interest rate cuts could lead to takeovers involving bigger companies than the type of deals seen in 2023. While the rate-cut journey still remains in its infancy for the UK and other key geographies, the predicted wave of large-cap takeovers is firmly in motion. It's a reminder there is value on the UK market in droves.There have been bids or expressions of

Stock prices in Europe opened in the red on Thursday morning in a data-heavy week for the US, as investors await US jobless figures.The FTSE 100 index opened down 7.81 points, or 0.1%, at 8,261.79. The FTSE 250 was down just 4.44 points at 20,804.17, and the AIM All-Share was down 1.03 points, or 0.1%, at 758.63.The Cboe UK 100 was down 0.1% at 826,40, the Cboe UK 250 was up marginally at 18,292.1

You might not think online grocery retailer Ocado (OCDO), luxury goods group Burberry (BRBY) and UK water utility giant Pennon (PNN) have much in common. However, they are all among the most shorted stocks according to data from the FCA (Financial Conduct Authority) daily short position report which you can find on the published on the ShortTracker website.WHAT IS SHORT SELLING?Short selling also

Luxury goods brand Burberry (BRBY) has ended its 15-year sojourn in the FTSE 100.The relegation comes after dramatic share price falls for the company in 2024. EasyJet (EZJ), which had been on course to suffer the same fate, looks to have saved itself with a recent rally (confirmation of the outcome of the reshuffle was due after market close on 4 September).In May this year, EasyJet investors bec

With the UK economy seemingly headed for a 'soft landing' and interest rates set to fall at some point this year, more adventurous investors will be looking to add a little more risk to their portfolios.Given the UK market, and the mid-cap space in particular, is widely acknowledged to be cheap, the passive option would be to buy a mid-cap ETF (exchange-traded fund) such as the iShares FTSE 250 (M

Burberry chair backs fashion houseN Brown former chair buys shares Billington and First Tin owners sellFashion firm Burberry (BRBY) received a vote of confidence from chair Gerry Murphy and chief financial officer Catherine Ferry who both bought shares in the company this month.Murphy picked up 20,000 shares at 725p on 16 July for a total consideration of £145,000 while Ferry acquired over 8,000

Burberry (BRBY) 719pLoss to date: 44.3%It's never easy confronting a big loss, but we have to admit we were too early in calling the turn at mono-brand fashion firm Burberry (BRBY).We said at the time there was risk involved given the company had issued two profit warnings, which tend not to be isolated events, but we felt with the shares having halved in the 12 months to February there wasn't muc