These days it seems as though every company and their dog are buying back shares, if the morning flood of RNS (regulatory news service) announcements is anything to go by. Out of 300-odd news stories each day from 7am, by our reckoning over a third are 'transaction in own shares'. Although it remains to be seen whether that trend will continue in the face of market turbulence. Notably Tesco...

UK stocks opened lower on Tuesday, despite a fall in the local unemployment rate, as Germany imposed stricter Covid-19 lockdown measures in a sign the pandemic is far from over.London's FTSE 100 softened 0.5% to 6,691.8 points early on, while the FTSE 250 fell 0.4% to 21,361.91.The UK unemployment rate fell to 5.0% in November to January, down from the last reading of 5.1% in October to...

Following a patchy start to the week, the fabulous FTSE 100 has subsequently managed to keep its chin up and trades 19.3 points higher on Friday at 7,703.2 with a helping hand from consumer goods colossus Unilever (ULVR), bid up 74p to £44.05.Lloyd's of London insurer Beazley (BEZ) cheapens 11.4% to 493.8p after reporting a slump in first half pre-tax profit to $57.5m (2017: $158.7m),...

Employee services platform Personal Group (PGH:AIM) releases figures for 2016 which despite being down on 2015, exceed analysts' expectations.The company provides a range of employee benefit, insurance and financial services.The firm's chief executive officer Mark Scanlon put the firm's 7.6% dip in revenues to £53.6m down to a HMRC consultation on changing salary sacrifice tax rules last...

A sell-off at insurance and employee benefits specialist Personal Group (PGH:AIM) may offer an opportunity to pick up shares in a good company at a reasonable price.Personal Group's share price has been under pressure because of weak performance in its non-insurance business, in part because of government changes to rules on staff perks.While these will weigh on performance in the near-term,...

The boss of non-life insurer and employee benefits provider Personal Group (PGH:AIM) has welcomed the government's investigation into the salary sacrifice industry.Salary sacrifice lets an employee dodge paying tax and national insurance through an employer deducting money from the payroll to spend on certain benefits, such as child care or a pension.The government is looking into narrowing...

Non-life insurer and employee benefits provider Personal Group (PGH:AIM) updates the market withhalf-year results on 20 September and, after a 24% sell-off year-to-date, investors appear to be expecting the worst.In a trading update published 7 July, chief financial officer Mike Dugdale announced a surprise shutdown of the insurer's mobile business, which it had been developing to diversify...

Shares in Personal Group (PGH:AIM) remain flat as the market ignores a downgrade to the insurance and employee benefits provider's 2016 profits. Investors have instead focused on another year of headline growth in 2015 and are sticking with the stock.Shares edge 0.9% higher to 565p following a 14% rise in pre-tax profits to £10.4 million in 2015. The total 20.9p a share dividend is 7% higher...

More value-accretive acquisitions could be on the cards for employee benefits provider Personal Group (PGH:AIM) after it wrote record new business premiums in the first half of the year. The group has £21.7 million cash to help expand its offering further, which currently includes childcare vouchers, income protection and discounts at various retailers.Sales improved 9.3% to £19 million in...

London shares slump into the red for a third straight day in early trade on Tuesday as ongoing concerns about Greece are added to but a hefty sell-off in China and caution ahead of inflation data.The FTSE 100 index is trading around 35 points lower, or 0.5%, at 6,675 early on, after hitting a three-month closing low of 6,710.52 on Monday.Midcaps and the wider market are similarly off, the FTSE...

Employee benefits provider Personal Group (PGH:AIM) could add to its client base thanks to its new mobile phone airtime offering. Added to its roster of salary-sacrifice products following the £1.3 million acquisition of Shebang Technologies (20 Apr) - the launch of Personal Group Mobile prompts 2016 earnings upgrades from house broker Cenkos.The deal has given the group the platform and...

Latham (James) (LTHM:AIM) 577.5pSheet and hardwood supplier Latham has been consistently profitable for the past 10 years, more than doubling operating profit in the same period. The Hemel Hempstead-based company is expected to grow earnings per share 19% to 39.5p this year.Leaf Clean Energy (LEAF:AIM) 34pRenewable energy investor Leaf Clean is a closed-end fund in run-off. At a meeting in...

Imagine having a drip feed of cash to pay your bills or a regular supply of money that you can use to make new investments, neither coming from your salary. That's the ultimate appeal of income-paying instruments such as stocks, funds, exchange-traded products (ETPs) or bonds.The universe of potential investment choices is vast, so in this issue of Shares we've pulled together the key...

The attractions of investing in a company that pays quarterly dividends are, for the income investor, undeniable. The range of London-listed securities offering such a steady stream of cash to shareholders is substantial. While the payment of quarterly dividends is not the norm on this side of the Atlantic, Shares has nevertheless identified a list of 61 vehicles that reward their shareholders...

Allergy to double upGrass, tree and ragweed allergy treatment specialist Allergy Therapeutics (AGY:AIM) is forecast to more than double profits this year, to £1.1 million from 2013's £430,000. Reassuring interims on Monday (24 Mar), revealing benefits of moving into new geographic markets, would add confidence here. (MD)Kingfisher's home improvementsKeep your eye on Kingfisher's (KGF) finals...

Despite the events in Ukraine prompting volatility, the FTSE 100 remains near its 1999 all-time closing peak of 6,930 and the FTSE 250 is also within striking distance of its all-time high.But the cynics and sceptics point out how the FTSE Aim All-Share, the broadest benchmark for the London Stock Exchange's (LSE) junior platform, still languishes miles below the 1,267 summit it reached in May...

Employee benefits provider Personal's (PGH:AIM) investment in its sales infrastructure, including the increasing use of digital sales aides, and spate of big contract wins are laying the foundations for future growth.The Milton Keynes-based group, which provides healthcare, death benefits and income protection plans to more than 1.2 million people in some 400 companies, has been using iPads...

Rialto fired upWest African hydrocarbon company Rialto Energy (RIA:AIM) is focused on getting its Gazelle natural gas project offshore Ivory Coast into production. Managing director Rob Shepherd says the $130 million costs can be met through a combination of debt and $50 million from partner Vitol. (TS)Get PersonalOngoing investment in sales and technology at employee benefits provider...

London's blue-chip benchmark, which has had a storming start to 2013, was off 5.9 points at 6,717.2 by lunchtime on Monday, a session in which bus and train operator FirstGroup (FGP) proved one of the market heaviest fallers.Shares in the Aberdeen-based transport group shed 20% to 179p after it announced proposals for a £615 million rights issue at a hefty discount in a bid to reduce its...

Employee benefits specialist Personal Group (PGH:AIM) looks set for estimate upgrades after record first-quarter results which show management is making progress in developing the firm's core operations.This followed a strong set of fourth-quarter figures where sales grew 15% at the £115 million cap, which has arranged programmes for 1.2 million employees across more than 400 UK companies....