Stocks in London were down at the close on Tuesday, amid disappointing manufacturing data from both the US and the UK.The FTSE 100 index closed down 11.72 points, 0.2%, at 7,721.52. The FTSE 250 ended down 177.83 points, 0.9%, at 19,511.80, and the AIM All-Share closed down 1.77 points, or 0.2%, at 761.55.The Cboe UK 100 ended down 0.3% at 770.31, the Cboe UK 250 closed down 1.2% at 16,966.88,...

It has been an up and down year for the UK stock market but some names have really shone over the course of the last 12 months. In this article we go through the market cap ranks to identify the best performing large-, mid- and small-cap stocks in 2023.£5 billion+ market capWhile Nvidia (NVDA:NASDAQ) has dominated headlines globally as excitement around AI (artificial intelligence) helped...

London's FTSE 100 edged 0.21% higher to 7,356.94 points on the last full trading day before Christmas, as investors welcomed news that the Omicron variant may not be as severe as previous strains.Citing data from an Oxford University laboratory study, drugs giant AstraZeneca (AZN) said a three dose course of its Covid-19 vaccine is effective against the highly transmissible new strain.This...

Oil wellhead specialist Plexus (POS:AIM) is bouncing back from a profit warning on 16 May thanks to winning its first order from Norway's largest independent petroleum producer, Aker BP, three days later. Its share price has been very volatile this year, surging from 75p at the start of 2017 to 125p a few weeks later, before hitting a low of 60.25p upon May's profit warning. It now trades at...

FTSE 100 advertising giant WPP (WPP) rises 3% to £17.58 as third quarter results benefit from the weak pound. Revenue was up 23.4% to £3.61bn on actual exchange rates - but only up 7.6% if you assume no change to currency rates year-on-year. Operations in the UK slowed in the quarter which WPP suggests could be 'the first signs of Brexit anxiety'.WPP is one of the few risers in the blue chip...

Analysts from Credit Suisse recently returned from payments industry conference Money 2020 excited about the opportunity for British payments firm Worldpay (WPG).Highlighting sound growth prospects, supportive roles from payment schemes Visa (V.:NYSE) and Mastercard (MA.:NYSE) and limited short-term risks around price pressure in the payments industry, Worldpay looks in good shape despite a...

London stocks surge in early trade on Wednesday after a dovish US Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen last night reiterated the need for interest-rate caution. Miners and oil majors form the vanguard at the head of the FTSE leader board, the UK blue-chip index charging 85 points, or about 1.4%, higher to 6,192.US equipment rental play Ashtead (AHT), up 2.4% to 871p, is among a number of...

London equities reverse initial progress to shift modestly lower in early trade on Monday, with Barclays (BARC), BT (BT.A) and BP (BP.) among big-ticket fallers. This after gains on Wall Street overnight Friday, and in Asia this morning. The FTSE 100 index is roughly 13 points lower at 5,888.There was further pain in the oil and gas sector as oil prices reversed Friday's big gains with BP down...

Our best ideas portfolio has significantly outperformed the stock market in 2015. This shows the power of good stock picking. Our actively-managed Plays of the Week tips have delivered an average 7.1% return on a 12-month basis, excluding dividends.In comparison, the FTSE All-Share is down by a miserable 1.4% over the same period. When we adjust the FTSE All-Share performance so the comparison...

Plexus (POS:AIM) 229.4pGain to date: 4.2%Original entry price: Buy at 220p, 2 Jul 2015Some extremely bullish news from oil services minnow Plexus (POS:AIM) is being somewhat overshadowed by the gyrations in the oil price. Regardless our Play is off to a decent start in difficult markets. On 2 July the company confirmed the 'milestone' licensing deal we had flagged in an article published the...

Ben Van Bilderbeek, the chief executive of Plexus (POS:AIM), is always keen to talk about the 'hockey stick' moment when the company will achieve a breakthrough with its POS-Grip wellhead technology. This is likely to come in the form of a licensing or royalty agreement for large-scale manufacture of its POS-Grip system.This is partly why valuing Plexus on the basis of its so-called 'organic...

Cash joy for QuindellShareholders in Quindell (QPP:AIM) could get at least 100p per share cash windfall if the insurance services group completes a £637 million asset sale to SGH. The shares shot up on the news (30 Mar) to 171p but had eased back to 153.4p as Shares went to press. (DC)888 goes live statesideGambler 888 (888) has launched the first interstate online poker network in the US to...

London markets open sharply lower in early trade on Thursday matching the steep sell-off on Wall Street overnight and fuelled by escalating violence in Yemen. In London, financial stocks bare the brunt of investor concerns, with the blue-chip FTSE 100 index losing more than 85 points, or 1.2%, to 6,904.A spike in oil prices - with European benchmark Brent up 3.6% to $58.50 per barrel - follows...

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...

Ready to flowEnergy supply and micro combined heat and power (mCHP) boiler designer Flowgroup (FLOW:AIM) is believed to be close to having the first units roll off the production line of manufacturing partner Jabil Circuit (JBL:NYSE). First boiler sales are predicted in January ahead of Britain's boiler replacement annual peak. (SFr)Serco story unravelsTroubles persist for FTSE 100 outsourcing...

The UK has a rich industrial tradition evidenced by the fact that the revolution which bears the same moniker was conceived here. Technological expertise and innovation remain the key attributes which are likely to see challenger companies in this sector make the step up.Our five key selections have both qualities in spades. They include track testing robot maker AB Dynamics (ABDP:AIM), gas...

In our search for challenger companies we turn the spotlight on the Oil & Gas industry this week. The majors are auctioning off assets fast with Royal Dutch Shell (RDSB) selling most of its stake in Aussie producer Woodside Petroleum (WPL:ASX) for $5.7 billion on 18 June. And with the incumbents retrenching, the emerging companies in this space are likely to take one of three main routes to...

Feast on SnackTimeVending operator SnackTime (SNAK:AIM) is a potential bid target once more, having raised £570,000 to pare debt and top up its working capital. The £2 million cap's new funds were raised from Versatel, a vehicle whose directors include shareholder Boris Belotserkovsky, owner of the Russian vending company Uvenco. (JC)Safestore tackles debtsInvestors will discover if...

Multi-utility services supplier Telecom Plus (TEP) gets investors excited again with pleasing full-year results showing 500,000 customers break-through, pre-tax profits up 25% and a 13% payout hike. There's even a Terry Wogan marketing film, driving the shares 11% higher to £15.17.Breathing disease specialist Vectura (VEC) improves 2.9% to 131.2p as its pre-tax losses are slashed by more than...

Politicking between the Coalition Government and the opposition Labour party is already starting to have an effect on corporate strategies. Utility SSE (SSE) is freezing its prices until January 2016. As a result the FTSE 100 firm is also shelving two planned wind farms and looking to cut its exposure to the sector by a third. These moves will help SSE conserve cash and support its dividend...