Harbour chairman sells big chunkEnergean directors buy up stockFiltronic CEO buys £24,986 sharesEIG Separate Investments (Cayman), an entity closely associated with R. Blair Thomas, chairman of FTSE 250 oil and gas company Harbour Energy (HBR), sold 6,653,009 million Harbour shares at 206p for a total value of £13,705,198.54 on 25 March.The disposal comes after the North Sea producer swung...

Defensives hold up in sell-offNew appetite for growth stocksBanks unable to shake off lossesAs the dust settles from the three-day 'Liberation Day'-inspired sell-off, the list of winners and losers makes for interesting reading.Not everything which held up during the market meltdown is being sold off, and not everything which racked up big losses is rebounding, unlike in previous recoveries,...

Stock prices in Europe were in the green at midday on Tuesday, while medical device developer Belluscura surged on London's AIM market after anticipating a revenue jump.The FTSE 100 index was up 9.28 points, or 0.1%, at 8,337.06. The FTSE 250 was down 21.43 points, or 0.1%, at 21,168.05, and the AIM All-Share was up 1.56 points, or 0.2%, at 779.25.The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.1% at 833.82, the...

European equities ended higher on Thursday, with the FTSE 100 and DAX 40 achieving record highs, the former boosted by a dovish tilt to the latest Bank of England decision.Across the Atlantic, weaker US labour data hurt the dollar, amid the expectation that a cooler jobs market could presage an eventual rate cut by the BoE?s US counterpart.At its May meeting, the BoE?s Monetary Policy...

Stock prices in London surged on Thursday afternoon, shaking off a muted morning, as a dovish tilt to the Bank of England?s latest rate hold supported equities.Threadneedle Street maintained bank rate at a 16-year high of 5.25% for the sixth meeting in-a-row. However, two members of its Monetary Policy Committee backed a 25 basis point cut. Seven, Governor Andrew Bailey included, supported the...

Stock prices in London edged down at the open on Thursday, while investors expect the Bank of England to keep its benchmark bank rate unchanged.The FTSE 100 index opened down just 2.68 points at 8,351.37. The FTSE 250 was down 10.32 points, 0.1%, at 20,481.67, while the AIM All-Share was up 1.41 points, 0.2%, at 781.24.The Cboe UK 100 was marginally up at 833.97, the Cboe UK 250 was up 0.1% at...

Ashtead Technology revenue soarsFull-year results seen 'comfortably' above forecastsWood Group inks $330 million dealAshtead Technology (AT.:AIM), the offshore energy services firm spun out of construction equipment hire group Ashtead (AHT) in late 2021, seems to be following in the tracks of its parent company with its latest trading update.After a 57% jump in first-half revenue, the firm now...

After a strong 2022 as energy prices surged in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the UK's contingent of UK small and mid-cap oil and gas companies has endured a much more challenging time in 2023. Windfall taxes have taken a big bite out of profits and commodity markets have fallen back as fears of recession dampen demand expectations.Facing the prospect of an unstable and more onerous...

Saga investors have to hope earnings are on courseThe share price has been unusually volatile since the interim resultsRather like its cruise-ship customers, shareholders in over-50s financial services and leisure group Saga (SAGA) will be hoping everything is plain sailing when the firm reports full year earnings on 4 April.The last six months have been anything but quiet, with the shares...

There was little doubt about the part of its latest results which Harbour Energy (HBR) wanted the market to focus on.Whereas companies often look to flatter their headline profit numbers, the opposite seemed to be true when Harbour, previously known as Premier Oil, reported full-year results on 9 March. Pre-tax profit of $2.46 billion had effectively been wiped out by the energy profits levy...

- Oxford Metrics directors bag £3.2 million- Harbour Energy sees largest holder selling £6.4 million- Whitbread non-exec picks up sharesDirectors at smart sensing software company Oxford Metrics (OMG) collectively sold 2.9 million shares on 13 February at 110p per share, netting £3.19 million in cash.The sales were made for personal financial and estate planning purposes and to satisfy...

- Three new faces in the FTSE 100- Five stocks join the FTSE 250- Changes take effect from 19 DecemberIndex compiler FTSE Russell, owned by London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG), has just released the results of its December quarterly review.Three stocks are being promoted to the FTSE 100 large-cap index, meaning three stocks are leaving to join the FTSE 250 mid-cap universe, as Shares...

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...

- Index changes to be announced tonight- Three new names to join the FTSE 100- Four new faces in the mid-cap FTSE 250Investors with FTSE tracker funds will be keenly waiting for details of the latest index reshuffle due to be published after the market close tonight.As well as changes to the FTSE 100 big-cap index there are expected to be several changes to the FTSE 250 mid-cap benchmark and...

There were two key takeaways for the energy sector from chancellor Rishi Sunak's cost of living measures (25 May). First the windfall tax - or 'temporary, targeted energy profits levy' - went further than the measures proposed by Labour.Second, power generation firms are not out of the woods yet despite any announcement on a levy on their excess profit being delayed.Ominously the Treasury is...

Soaring energy prices and fuel shortages are leading to punch ups at the pumps and spiralling bills for consumers and businesses. However, the current turmoil is not bad news for everyone.The oil and gas sector, which has been a strong performer so far in 2021, is gathering even greater momentum as we head into autumn as natural gas markets reach record levels and oil trades above $80 per...