I am aged 78 and have been receiving my state pension for the last 13 years. I know that my state pension will increase in April. Can you tell me how much it will increase by?LeonardRachel Vahey, AJ Bell Head of Public Policy, says:The media has recently been full of the 4.1% increase to state pensions, which comes into effect next month. And whereas that figure is true, the headlines don't...

Pre-tax profit of £116.6 million reported for 2024Annualised cost savings of £140 millionContract renewal rate grew to 92%, up from 51% in 2023Shares in Capita (CPI) rallied more than 10% to 14p in morning trading as the outsourcing firm said full year 2024 results were in line with market expectations.Capita, a one-time FTSE 100 company, reported a pre-tax profit of £116.6 million for the...

Strong first-half returnsInterim dividend up 20%Portfolio still undervaluedValue-focused investment trust Temple Bar (TMPL) continued its run of outperformance in the six months to 30 June with an NAV (net asset value) total return of 13.1% against a 7.4% return for the FTSE All-Share index.The share price total return was 11% following a widening of the discount to NAV to 7.5% from 5.6% at...

Dowlais CEO buys 415,133 sharesEvoke director buys 250,000 sharesNew Capita CFO investsThe CEO of automotive parts supplier Dowlais (DWL), Liam Butterworth, has bought nearly a quarter of million pounds worth of shares in the company after downbeat first-half results.Butterworth snapped up 415,133 shares at 60p for a total value of £248,135 on 14 August.This came after results for the six...

Firm back in the blackCost cutting on trackNew CEO making his markInvestors in FTSE 250 professional services and outsourcing group Capita (CPI) may be scratching their heads this morning after the firm's positive half-year trading update was met with sustained selling.The shares, which had already lost 11% year-to-date, dropped as much as 2.1p or another 11% to 17p in early trading before...

Shares in Capita (CPI) surged after the outsourcing firm announced (9 July) the sale of its standalone software business Capita One to a subsidiary of MRI Software.Capita One provides software solutions across the UK public sector to local authorities, local education authorities and housing associations. In 2023, the business generated pre-tax profits of £19 million on revenue of £55...

Bunzl raises profit target againCapita and Serco orders growDriver the day?s star turnOn a good day for markets in general, UK business services firms were feeling the love after posting positive trading updates.Half a dozen firms, from FTSE 100 distributor Bunzl (BNZL) to FTSE 250 outsourcer Serco (SRP) and staffing firm SThree (STEM) all the way down to tiddlers Capita (CPI), Driver (DRV)...

New cost-cutting plan risks 900 jobsBig one-off hit to full-year earningsShares gain over 9% to 21pShares in Capita (CPI) rallied 9% to 21p as the business process outsourcing firm announced a new cost-saving plan aimed at saving an additional £20 million a year. The jump reduces losses for the year to date to a little over 17%.The announcement is something of a double-edged sword ? on the...

I am in my 30s and each year I've seen the triple lock policy means that the state pension goes up by quite large amount - often by more than my salary. I'm not against the state pension going up, but I wonder if I will ever see the benefit that those in their 60s and 70s are seeing now. How long will this policy be guaranteed for? And is the system likely to be hugely different by the time I...

THIS IS AN ADVERTISING FEATUREHisashi Arakawa, Investment Manager, abrdn Japan Investment Trust PLC-Japanese shares sold off as Russia escalated tensions with Ukraine.-Companies are passing on rising input cost to their end customers.-Recent earnings reports for the Japanese corporate sector have been buoyant.Japan has not been able to escape the global stock market volatility seen in the wake...

London's blue chip benchmark closed Friday's session 1.2% lower at 7,466.07 points, while the FTSE 250 finished almost 1% down at 21,643.3, rounding off a volatile week for markets as investors fretted over inflation and rising interest rates as well as the threat of conflict in Ukraine.Despite higher yields, banking stocks dragged on the blue chip benchmark with HSBC (HSBA) off 1.9% at...

Following a reasonably steady start, the FTSE 100 was down materially by midday, with a 1.2% fall to 7,462.81 points, while the FTSE 250 was off 0.8% at 21,673.64.This followed weak trading in the US overnight as well as strength in sterling, which hits the relative value of the overseas earnings which dominate the blue chip benchmark index.Negative sentiment was compounded by persistent...

London's FTSE 100 traded broadly flat on Wednesday, largely shrugging off a higher than expected local inflation reading which stoked rate rise concerns and offset some of the optimism generated by profit upgrades from Burberry (BRBY) and Pearson (PSON).The latest inflation data from the Office for National Statistics showed an annual rise in the UK consumer price index (CPI) of 5.4% in...

UK first-time house buyer numbers have hit their highest since 2002, according to a new study by Yorkshire Building Society, and this could have positive implications of the nation banks.UK banks, such as Barclays (BARC), Lloyds (LLOY), HSBC (HSBA), and NatWest (NWB) - whose shares all rallied on Tuesday 5 January - could benefit in two ways from the surge in first-time buyer lending...

London's FTSE 100 started 2022 on the front foot, led by travel, leisure and energy stocks as investors attempted to move on from worries about the economic impact of the Omicron variant.Gains for oil firms, airlines and hotel, pub and restaurant plays reflected diminishing concerns over the latest Covid variant amid hopes it is milder, if more transmissible, and therefore may have a limited...

The FTSE 100 index of leading UK equities marked the last trading session ahead of the Christmas festivities by hitting a new high for the year of 7,389 points, up 0.25% or 16 points, before reversing at the last moment to finish flat.The move up followed a broadly positive showing from US markets, with the Dow Jones Industrial Index, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite all finishing in...

Consulting and services group Capita (CPI) announced it had agreed the sale of its AMT Sybex software business to Jonas Software for up to £40 million, lifting its shares 1.7% to 37.7p.AMT Sybex is the leading provider of critical utilities and infrastructure software in the UK. Its software facilitates efficient and reliable energy provision by balancing supply and demand.Jonas will pay an...

Shares in outsourcer Capita (CPI) slumped 17.9% to 37.1p, extending a miserable run for the shares, as business from private sector clients was sluggish.Overall revenues rose by 0.6% to £2.9 billion in the 11 months to 30 November 2021. But contract losses at its Capita experience division, handling customer service for private firms, overshadowed growth in its public sector arm.Capita public...

UK investors were in 'wait and see' mode ahead of a huge week for markets, with central banks in the UK, Europe, Japan and the US set to guide on the future path of interest rates.On Wednesday the US Federal Reserve is expected to announce it will accelerate 'tapering' or reducing its support for financial markets and to issue guidance on when it will raise rates, while on Thursday the Bank of...

Both the FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 continued to trade in positive territory by midday during a relatively quiet day, with the US markets are closed for the Thanksgiving holiday.The CBI (Confederation of British Industry) monthly retail sales balance increased to a three month high of +39 from +30 and is anticipated to rise again in December. This has in part been due to consumers starting their...