Surrey-based maker of Peppa Pig, Teletubbies and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles toys, Character Group (CCT :AIM), knocked earnings forecasts into a cocked hat with its first-half results as pre-tax profit multiplied from £0.2 million to £2.2 million.The firm said the jump in profitability in the six months to February was down to reduced selling and distribution costs and a £0.2 million...

Shares in toy, games and giftware designer Character (CCT:AIM) crashed 19% lower to 562.5p on Wednesday as the New Malden-headquartered company downgraded annual earnings guidance due to a combination of supply chain disruption and rising costs.The developer and distributor of toy products based on top brands including Peppa Pig, Fireman Sam and Goo Jit Zu warned underlying pre-tax profit for...

Keeping a regular watch on stocks with positive and negative share price momentum is a useful exercise as it tells us which areas of the market are hot or not.Investors who follow a pure momentum strategy like to buy stocks that keep a hitting a new 12-month high in the belief the share price is on a roll and can keep going up.Some investors avoid stocks hitting a new 12-month low, for fear...

The FTSE 100 managed to recover some ground on Friday afternoon as it emerged the R number, showing how quickly Covid-19 is being transmitted, fell to between 0.8 and 1 across the UK.This encouraging news on the course of the pandemic helped the index off its lows to trade down 0.3% at 6,695.07. Over in the US the S&P 500 was also down 0.3% to 3,841.23 by 4.30pm UK time.Airlines and travel...

The FTSE 100 fell sharply by lunchtime Friday as investors weighed a string of negative economic updates and amid fears of a lengthy lockdown in the UK.Airlines and travel operators were also under pressure International Consolidated Airlines (IAG) down 3.9% to 150.9p on comments from Spain suggesting holidays to one of Britons' favourite holiday destinations might be delayed until late...

Toys, games and giftware distributor Character Group's (CCT:AIM) shares cheapened 9% to 338p on a full year profit warning blamed on disruption in Scandinavia and margin pressure caused by the weakening of the pound against the US dollar.However, the share price decline was moderated by the fact the maker of Peppa Pig, Fireman Sam and Pokemon-branded ranges assured it will maintain the final...

UK stock markets continue to drift sideways in early trade on Friday with little direction provided by corporate news on a typically quiet last day of the week's trading.Banks are popular with both Lloyds (LLOY) and Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) up more than 2% a piece, while private hospitals firm NMC Healthcare (NMC) and housebuilder Taylor Wimpey TW.) both sit at the head of the FTSE 100...

TV and film rights firm and owner of kids TV favourite Peppa Pig, Entertainment One (ETO) surges nearly 30% to 573p on the back of a £3.3bn bid from US toy manufacturer Hasbro.The news follows on from the recently announced £4.6bn takeover of pubs firm Greene King (GNK), and is another indication that the weakness in sterling is making UK firms vulnerable to overseas predators.Hasbro's...

European and Asian markets catch a ride on the same tailwind which lifted US stocks last night, namely hopes that the US could ease tariffs on China. That would be positive for commodity producers, which is why miners and oil stocks are among the biggest risers on the UK market on Friday, the FTSE 100 firming 53 points to trade at 6,888.2.In corporate news, budget airline Ryanair (RYA) loses...

While Asian markets climbed overnight on hopes of new trade talks between the US and China, London's FTSE 100 firms just 9.7 points to 7,291 on Friday, a modest gain which is nowhere near strong enough for investors to become more optimistic about the direction of travel.In corporate news, specialist bank and fund manager Investec (INVP) sparks up 12.4% to 545p after announcing plans to hive...

Full year results (4 Dec) from Character Group (CCT:AIM) provide the first opportunity to check on trading trends since the toy distributor's recent profit warning (11 Oct).The company's Stretch Armstrong and Laser X toys are expected to be among the bestsellers this Christmas, in the opinion of an array of retailers.

Toys and games designer and distributor Character Group (CCT:AIM) has been sent to the naughty step by investors, the shares crashing 15% lower to 379.4p on news profits for the year to August 2018 are expected to be 'significantly below current market estimates'.Management blames major customer Toys "R" Us' lurch into Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the US and Canada for the warning,...

Following stronger advances in the US and Asian markets, yet with Brexit and political developments tempering investors' enthusiasm, London's FTSE 100 creeps 1.14 points higher to 7,276.4 early on Wednesday.Unloved home improvement products powerhouse Kingfisher (KGF) rallies 6.6% to 316p on better-than-expected half year results, underlying profit before tax up 0.9% to £440m versus a...

The FTSE 100 opens down by over 20 points to 7,274.85 as North Korea's latest missile test spooks investors.Cheap and cheerful pub operator JD Wetherspoon (JDW) ticks up 7% to £11.17 as its pre-tax profit before exceptional items hit £102.8m in the 53 weeks to 30 July, a 27.5% increase on 2016's figure. Like-for-like sales increased by 4%.Toys and games maker and distributer Character (CCT)...

Toys and games designer Character (CCT:AIM) has gained the UK and Ireland master toy distributor rights to the globally popular Pokemon brand, sparking a 4% share price gain to 504.5p.Admittedly the ranges won't be ready for this Christmas, but the deal will allow Character to deepen and broaden an already-winning portfolio of products, thereby extending its competitive advantage in a tough...

Recent share price weakness at Character (CCT:AIM) is a buying opportunity. Elevated sourcing costs and a worsening UK consumer backdrop are headwinds but a trading update next month could flag strong appetite for its brands as retailers stock-up on Character's 'must-have' toys for Christmas.Character's diversified portfolio of iconic brands appeal to successive generations of children and...

UK markets are largely flat on inauguration day for Donald Trump with the FTSE 100 nudging six to seven points lower to stay just above 7,200 on an otherwise typically dull Friday for corporate news. The UK blue-chip index closed down 0.54% at 7208.44 points on Thursday, dragged down by British parcel and postal firm Royal Mail (RMG), whose results were badly received, which you can read about...

It is possible to shelter part of your wealth from the taxman by investing in certain AIM-quoted stocks. Your estate won't have to pay the 40% inheritance tax (IHT) charge upon your death for any investments in AIM stocks that qualify for business property relief (BPR), subject to certain conditions.Frustratingly the taxman, HMRC, refuses to publish a list of qualifying stocks because a...

Character (CCT:AIM) 522.5pGain to date: 10%Original entry price: 475p, 31 Mar 2016Our bullish call on toy company Character (CCT:AIM) has netted us a 10% gain since we added it as a Play on 31 March and we think further upside is on the horizon.We particularly like the stock at the moment because of the resilience of the toy industry during times of economic uncertainty. Research suggests...

Toy company Character (CCT:AIM) has proved its ability to stay ahead of the curve when it comes to pre-schoolers' favourite toys, with its recently-launched Teletubbies range helping to boost first half revenues by 12% to £65.2 million.We revealed the £110 million cap, up 2% to 522.5p, had seen strong initial sales of its stuffed talking Teletubbies toys in March, when we added it as a...