Over the long haul, small-caps have historically outperformed large caps, fuelling the research highlighting the so-called 'small-cap effect' ? the idea that smaller companies offer higher risk-adjusted returns than larger ones. Unfortunately, the higher interest rate environment of recent years has proved tough for the stock market's small fry, who've spent more than a decade lagging more sizeabl

Jet2 founder Meeson sells five million sharesMajor Costain shareholder sells upWeir director snaps up £60,277 sharesPhilip Meeson, founder and largest shareholder of airline and package holidays provider Jet2 (JET2:AIM) has sold five million shares to a limited number of institutional investors on 11 September, representing approximately 2.3% of the issued ordinary share capital in the company.Th

Summer 2024 on sale seat capacity up 12.4%Booked-to-date holiday customers up 8%Shares up 41% over the past yearShares in Jet2 (JET2:AIM) flew 1.6% higher to £14.78 as the market responded positively to the airline and package holidays provider's strong late booking momentum in July and August which helped lift on sale seat capacity for summer 2024 to 17.17 million seats, up 12.4% from last summe

Investors will be keen to discover if insurer Direct Line Insurance (DLG) has continued its positive start to the year when it reports first-half results on 4 September after a tumultuous 12 months.The business delivered a strong first quarter, with double-digit written premium growth in Motor, Home and Commercial businesses and overall growth of 15% for ongoing operations.Chief executive Adam Win

Dividend resumedTotal revenue €14.72 billionIAG shares up 8% year-to-dateShares in International Consolidated Airlines (IAG) rose over 6% in morning trading to 169p as the British Airways owner said strong demand for travel helped lift its results in the six months to 30 June 2024.Total revenue increased 8% to €14.72 billion compared to €13.58 billion in the same year ago period.

Markets in London edged higher on Thursday around midday, after news that the Bank of England has cut interest rates for the first time in over four years.Against the dollar, the pound slipped to $1.2768 early on Thursday afternoon in London, from $1.2844 at the London equities close on Wednesday. Sterling traded as low as $1.2755 earlier on Thursday, its weakest level in around a month.The FTSE 1

Burberry chair shows faith after profit warningMotorpoint CEO sells 100,000 sharesJet2 chairman snaps up stockDr Gerry Murphy, chairman of Burberry (BRBY), bought 20,000 shares in the luxury goods group at 725p for a total value of £145,000 on 16 July.Murphy's move followed another poor update from the heritage trench coats-to-cashmere scarves seller, which suspended its dividend, and said chief

European markets and the pound had a strong day on Thursday, with the afternoon's US inflation reading boosting risk appetite.Markets in New York got off the line slowly, however, amid an apparent rotation out of tech following a bullish run in recent days.The FTSE 100 index closed up 29.83 points, 0.4%, at 8,223.34. The FTSE 250 was surged 261.15 points, 1.3%, at 21,188.91, and the AIM All-Share

Progress made with growth strategyFull year pre-tax profit up 43%Over the past year shares have gained 16%Shares in Jet2 (JET2:AIM) were up over 1% in morning trading at £13.08 as the airline and package holidays provider reported a 43% jump in pre-tax profit to £529.5 million for the year ending 31 March 2024.Total revenue was up 24% to £6.25 billion compared to £5.03 billion last year.The ai

Share prices in London closed up on Wednesday as New York climbed midday, following Fed Chair Jerome Powell's testimony and ahead of key US inflation data on Thursday.The FTSE 100 index closed up 53.70 points, 0.7%, at 8,193.51. The FTSE 250 ended up 282.74 points, 1.4%, at 20,927.76, and the AIM All-Share closed up 0.91 of a point, 0.1%, at 772.85.The Cboe UK 100 ended up 0.7% at 816.35, the Cboe

While the shares prices of many housebuilders are still well below where they were pre-pandemic, so are their earnings which means although the sector may look cheap at first glance it could be a classic 'value trap' instead.In the case of Barratt Developments (BDEV), whose shares are still almost 50% below their March 2020 level and which has a trading update on 10 July, sales for the year to Jun

$350 million sale completes transformationCash proceeds to be returned via buybacksResilient results deliveredTate & Lyle (TATE) was in demand with investors on Thursday, shares sweetening up 5.2% to 712.5p after the company completed its strategic shift towards a speciality food and beverage business with the $350 million (£279 million) sale of its remaining 49.7% stake in Primient to KPS Capita

UK stocks look cheap on so many different valuation metrics, not just one or two, suggesting a robust, genuine investment opportunity is available to long-term investors. So why does nobody seem convinced?This article explores the scepticism surrounding the UK?s market?s attractive valuation and examines the underlying evidence to support it. Shares concludes UK stocks really are a compelling inve

Fund outperforms benchmark in 2023Dividend increases by 7% to 7.65pShares sit at 13% discount to NAVMid- and small-cap UK growth investor Mercantile Investment Trust (MRC) outperformed its benchmark in the year to 31 January, delivering a net asset total return of 4.5% and total shareholder returns of 6.1%.The dividend was increased by 7% for the year to 7.65p per share, comfortably covered by rev

JPMorgan UK Small Cap Growth & Income(JUGI) 293.5pMarket cap: £403.4 millionA major trend in the investment trust sector is mergers between sub-scale trusts with similar remits to create funds large enough and sufficiently liquid to attract wealth managers and retail investors.One example which Shares believes offers a compelling proposition is JPMorgan UK Small Cap Growth & Income (JUGI), which

Stock prices in London were up on Thursday afternoon, although the FTSE 100 pared its initial progress and traded only a hair higher.The UK economy slipped into recession in the final quarter of 2023, according to the latest data, buoying hopes of speedier interest rate cuts from the Bank of England.But for the FTSE 100, gains were hard to come by as the equity trading session dragged on, with sha

Winter bookings above expectationsPre-tax profit guidance raisedShares up 11% year-to-dateShares in Jet2 (JET2:AIM) were up nearly 5% to £13.88 as the airline and package holiday provider said winter 2023/24 forward bookings were up by 17% for both flight-only and package holiday products for the year ending 31 March 2024.The company also slightly raised its outlook for group pre-tax profit (befo

Stock prices in London were higher on Thursday morning on news the UK has officially entered a mild recession, raising Bank of England interest rate cut hope.The economic figures could also carry political significance, as the UK prime minister faces a pair of by-election tests.On the corporate front, results from British Gas owner Centrica impressed. Among mid-caps Genus plunged on a China warnin

In this third part of our investor survey, we asked some of the UK?s leading fund managers which sectors or stocks they thought were the most promising for 2024.The responses were as varied as they were thought-provoking, with only a couple of managers singling out technology stocks.As before we would like to thank all those who took part for sharing their views, and we hope readers enjoy them. WH

For the second part of our annual survey, we asked fund managers if they had changed their view on any stocks this year, for better or for worse, and what lay behind their decisions.As with the winners and losers survey last week, the answers were often frank and once again we would like to thank everyone who took part.Thomas Moore - Aberdeen Equity Income Trust (AEI)THE STOCK THAT I CHANGED MY MI