Hollywood Bowl directors sell 300,000 sharesBarclays director sells shares after new highMidwich director buys 150,000 sharesMelanie Dickinson, chief people officer at tenpin bowling and mini-golf centre operator, Hollywood Bowl (BOWL) has sold 150,000 shares at 331p for a total value of £497,505 on 24 October.Dickinson now has 290,276 shares after the sale. Matthew Hart, chief marketing and tech

Profits to be 'significantly' down year-on-yearFurther deterioration in GermanyMidwich winning market shareSpecialist AV (audio visual) equipment distributor Midwich (MIDW:AIM) has forged a strong growth track record since coming to the stock market in 2016.However, the company is in the doghouse with investors after warning (21 October) that adjusted operating profit for 2024 will be 'significant

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

Stock prices in the UK, France and Germany were higher at midday Wednesday as investors await a US consumer price inflation print, after UK CPI inflation was reported higher.The FTSE 100 index was up 28.63 points, or 0.4%, at 8,263.86. The FTSE 250 was up 114.24 points, or 0.6%, at 20,858.32, and the AIM All-Share was up 1.10 points, or 0.1%, at 769.08.The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.5% at 826.01, the Cb

Stock prices in London were in the green on Wednesday morning, after Office for National Statistics data showed that while the rise in consumer prices accelerated, it was softer than anticipated.The FTSE 100 index opened 50.47 points, or 0.6%, at 8,285.28. The FTSE 250 was up 129.38 points, 0.6%, at 20,874.28, and the AIM All-Share was up 1.62 points, or 0.2%, at 769.60.The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.8%

Stocks in Europe opened in the green Monday morning, as investors look ahead to US inflation data later this week.The FTSE 100 index opened up 37.13 points, 0.5%, at 8,205.23. The FTSE 250 was up 62.88 points, 0.3%, at 20,688.06, and the AIM All-Share was up 2.53 points, 0.3%, at 768.77.The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.5% at 820.11, the Cboe UK 250 was up 0.5% at 18,135.94, and the Cboe Small Companies wa

The FTSE 100 was higher in London on Monday morning, amid a slew of manufacturing data, and as Labour leader Keir Starmer made promises over the weekend to bring down migration.The FTSE 100 index opened up 53.95 points, 0.7%, at 8,328.81. The FTSE 250 was up 114.93 points, or 0.6%, at 20,845.32, and the AIM All-Share was up 0.81 points, or 0.1%, at 806.60.The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.7% at 831.85, the

US-listed large-caps shone last year with shares in mega-caps, and the ?Magnificent Seven? in particular, surging higher. However, this outperformance only widened the valuation gap between US large and small-caps and left shares in the latter cohort languishing at the low end of historical valuations.Over one and five years, the Russell 2000 index of US small-cap stocks is up 14.6% and 30.5% at t

The IT reseller industry has enjoyed a strong bounce back from the world?s Covid reopening as customers line up to put in place digital strategies and adopt the latest technologies, and AI (artificial intelligence) levers are being pulled left, right and centre.International player Computacenter (CCC) said in September 2023 that it sees another record year for profits and analysts have been quick

Bets that the Federal Reserve will start cutting interest rates as early as March are starting to look optimistic after stronger-than-expected US jobs numbers over the past week, pushing up bond yields and leaving equity investors pondering what to do next.In a shortened working week, thanks to the Martin Luther King Day holiday (15 Jan), major US equity markets ended pretty much where they starte

Midwich director Fenby adds to his portfolioBodycote non-executive director snaps up 10,000 sharesWise CFO sells over £211,000 sharesStephen Fenby group managing director at Midwich (MIDW:AIM), the global specialist audio visual distributor to the trade market, has bought 50,000 shares at 376p for a total value of £187,885 on 30 October 2023.Following this transaction, Fenby and 'persons closely

Insurance non-exec buys sharesBig Technologies sets up employees trustMidwich director buys after strong resultsMohit Joshi, a non-executive director at UK insurer Aviva (AV.), bought 59,300 shares at 409p on 12 October for a total value of £242,537.The deal comes after several Aviva employees bought shares over the past few weeks, including chairman George Culmer and chief executive Amanda Blanc

Construction equipment rental specialist Ashtead (AHT) has setitself quite a high bar when it comes to its first-quarter earnings report on 5 September.The firm has beaten revenue forecasts in nine out of the last 10 quarters. Moreover, the comparison with the same quarter last year is a tough one as rental revenue was up 26% to just over $2 billion and adjusted pre-tax profit was up 29% to $555 m

First half revenue up 7.5%, pre-tax profit up 14%Momentum expected to continue for the rest of the yearNew acquisitions to boost earningsGlobal specialist audiovisual distributer to the trade market Midwich (MIDW:AIM) has maintained growth momentum in the first half to 30 June, despite tough comparatives, with revenue up 7.5% and adjusted pre-tax profit climbing 14% to over £21.5 million.In the f

Midwich (MIDW:AIM) 456pGain to date: 1.3%We highlighted specialist distributer of AV (audio visual) equipment to the trade market Midwich (MIDW:AIM) as an opportunity to buy above-average growth at a below-average price on 23 March.The shares are showing a small gain since we said to buy, but in general have drifted sideways while consensus earnings estimates have remained steady.WHAT'S HAPPENED S

Specialist distributor of AV (audio visual) equipment to the trade market Midwich (MIDW:AIM) has established a strong track record of growth since coming to the stock market in 2016.Although there are added risks to consider when investing in smaller companies, we believe Midwich is a great opportunity to buy above average growth at a below average price.Sales and adjusted operating profit have gr

Direct LineCan the insurer win back the market's support after dividend fiasco?Having paid out over £1.5 billion to shareholders in the last decade, including during the pandemic, Direct Line (DLG) was a well-liked and widely-owned stock.However, after dropping a bombshell in January with the news it was pulling its dividend in order to rebuild its balance sheet, Direct Line has a mountain to cli

Shares in London closed on Monday steady as markets were closed in New York, with investors looking ahead to the minutes of the US Federal Reserve meeting on Wednesday.The FTSE 100 index closed up 9.95 points, or 0.1%, at 8,014.31 on Monday. The FTSE 250 ended up 9.48 points, flat, at 20,098.41. The AIM All-Share closed up 1.06 points, or 0.1%, at 866.76.The Cboe UK 100 ended up 0.2% at 802.15, th

Share prices in London were steady on Monday at midday, as New York markets closing for a public holiday characterised an expected quiet start to the week.The FTSE 100 index was up just 1.82 points at 8,006.42. The FTSE 250 was down 15.42 points, or 0.1%, at 20,073.51, and the AIM All-Share was up 0.85 points, or 0.1%, at 866.55.The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.1% at 801.35, the Cboe UK 250 was down 0.1%

-First half revenues up 46%, operating profit up 45%-Bolt-on acquisitions supplement organic growth-Trading in line with prior increased full-year guidanceSpecialist audiovisual distributer Midwich (MIDW:AIM) continued to exhibit strong growth with first-half revenues jumping 46% year-on-year to £568.6 million and adjusted operating profit climbing 45% to £20.2 million.Excluding acquisitions org