Warm Easter holiday weather boosted seasonal sales of outdoor and gardening products and encouraged consumers to get out and spend on 'big-ticket' projects. Among the beneficiaries was DIY chain Wickes (WIX), where revenue grew 6.9% in the 17 weeks to 26 April 2025. The specialty retailer highlighted 'strong volume-led' retail sales, up 9.2% on a like-for-like basis. Wickes, which opened its...

Q1 return to sales growthTrade and digital businesses shineRob Parker to retireTopps Tiles' (TPT) shares rallied 8% to 40.2p after the tile specialist reported a return to sales growth for the first quarter ended 28 December 2024, buoyed by improved trading in the run-up to Christmas.The kitchen tiles-to-laminate flooring firm also announced that CEO Rob Parker plans to retire after 18 years...

MS Galleon wants change at the topCTD deal 'detrimental' to shareholdersTopps outperforming weak marketMS Galleon, the major shareholder in Topps Tiles (TPT), has called for the tile retailer to overhaul its senior management and strategy following what it describes as a series of 'costly blunders'.Shares in Topps Tiles cheapened 2.25% to 39.1p on the news, with investors concerned a boardroom...

Q3 like-for-likes down 9.7%But signs of sales stabilisation'Significant' online gainsTopps Tiles' (TPT) shares slid 4.2% to a 52-week low of 39p after the UK's leading tile specialist reported a 9.7% plunge in third quarter like-for-like sales as 'challenging' market conditions persisted.The share price reaction might have been harsher had Topps not stressed that sales stabilised through the...

Stocks in London slumped as increased geopolitical tensions and interest rate uncertainty added to investor nerves ahead of the US jobs report.The FTSE 100 index was down 77.03 points, 1.0%, at 7,898.86. The FTSE 250 was down 202.97 points, 1.0%, at 19,670.22, and the AIM All-Share was down 3.61 points, 0.5%, at 738.97.The Cboe UK 100 was down 0.9% at 789.74, the Cboe UK 250 was down 1.0% at...

Stocks in London were lower on Wednesday midday, as investor sentiment suffered with a persistently resilient US economy dampening expectations that US interest rates cuts will come sooner rather than later.The FTSE 100 index was down 30.55 points, 0.4%, at 7,904.54. The FTSE 250 was down 35.35 points, 0.2%, at 19,678.54, and the AIM All-Share was down 0.62 of a point, 0.1%, at 741.78.The Cboe...

Like-for-like sales trend worsensProfits to be second-half weightedLiberum halves FY24 estimatesLike-for-like sales tumbled 11.3% in the second quarter at Topps Tiles (TPT) amid persistently subdued demand in the UK RMI (repair, maintenance and improvement) market, especially for bigger-ticket projects.Shares in the UK?s market-leading tile retailer cheapened 3% to 42.7p on a warning...

The retail sector has had a dire 2022, heavily sold off on fears earnings will disappoint as households curb spending due to rising UK inflation and the energy price crisis.Earnings expectations have been cut and investors have priced in a recession already, which means bargain hunters may take the view retailers are now oversold, particularly as prime minister Liz Truss' energy price...

The FTSE 100 finished 0.81% in the green at 7,551.72 points on Wednesday, building on Tuesday's rally despite US CPI inflation hitting 7% in December, a 40-year high.With markets already pricing in rate rises, investors took the US inflation print in their stride, though it would have been a different story if the figure had strayed above the 7% most analysts had been expecting.Global equities...

London's FTSE 100 traded 0.66% higher at 7,540.92 points by lunchtime on Wednesday amid the release of a slew of positive local earnings updates, including guidance upgrades from retailers Sainsbury's (SBRY), JD Sports Fashion (JD.) and Dunelm (DNLM), and as investors awaited the release of key US inflation data due later in the day.The global mood already had been lifted by testimony from...

London's FTSE 100 traded almost 1% lower at 7,007.53 early on Wednesday, even after supermarkets giant Tesco (TSCO) posted bumper profits, as rising US bond yields and soaring energy prices stoked inflation fears.Oil prices were camped above $80 per barrel after producers' cartel OPEC failed to increase output and natural gas continued to touch record highs, leaving investors fretting that...

One of the very few positive effects of last year's pandemic was an increase in consumers spending on the repair, maintenance and improvement of their flats and houses.Having been confined indoors for months at a time, it didn't take long for people to set about redecorating and adding more indoor or outdoor space so they could live and work remotely more comfortably.That led to an explosion...

Online-only building materials retailer CMO plans to list shares on AIM in early July to tap the boom in home improvement projects that has boosted the likes of Kingfisher (KGF), Wickes (WIX) and Travis Perkins (TPK).While there is limited fundraising and valuation target details available yet the stunning AIM debut of online bathroom products retailer Victorian Plumbing (VIC:AIM) demonstrates...

London's FTSE 100 traded 0.4% lower at 6,747.46 early on Wednesday, despite the release of stronger-than-expected local economic data.Rising bond yields, and what they say about inflation and interest rate risks, had put US and Asian stocks under some modest pressure and the weak sentiment extended to Europe.UK gross domestic product grew by a relatively modest 1.3% in the fourth quarter of...

It might not seem like it in the depths of a gloomy lockdown winter, but brighter days are ahead of us. By mid-February the UK hopes to have vaccinated most over-70s, with a large chunk of over-50s potentially covered by the end of March.This cohort should then be much better protected against Covid-19 and that could result in a new spending spree.Getting the vaccine should allow for the...

Shares in tiles and flooring retailer Topps Tiles (TPT) edged 0.5% higher to 57.5p after the company saw a surge in sales in the 13 weeks to 26 December, but warned the new lockdown will impact trading.In a first quarter trading update, the firm reported a 19.9% increase in like-for-like sales compared to a 5.4% decrease in the same period a year ago, with strong growth across both its main...

Optimism surrounding Covid-19 vaccines combined with positive factory data from China and the UK to send the FTSE 100 higher on the first trading day of December, the blue chip benchmark ending the session 1.9% up at 6,384.73.Gold regained its shine again amid a rare down day for cryptocurrency Bitcoin, while US shares were in demand with the S&P 500 up 1.3% to 3,669.14 by 4.30pm UK...

The FTSE 100 was 2.1% firmer at 6,396.64 on Tuesday, the blue chip benchmark buoyed by positive factory data from China and the UK, although sterling remained volatile with Brexit talks going down to the wire.CORPORATE NEWSIn corporate news, department store Debenhams announced it is entering liquidation after JD Sports (JD.) pulled out of a deal to buy the group out of administration. Shares...

Following on from recording its biggest monthly gain in three decades in November, London's FTSE 100 started December in bright fashion with blue chip stocks soaring in early trade.At around 8.30am, the UK's benchmark index jumped 1.44% to 6,356.15, as positive Chinese factory data fueled global economic recovery hopes that are already supported by upbeat coronavirus vaccine...

UK markets reversed early falls to rally into lunch time, shrugging off the brutal sell-off in US technology stocks overnight. This was despite sentiment towards the housebuilding sector souring on news of a competition regulator probe into the selling of leasehold homes.At midday, the benchmark FTSE 100 is up 0.5% at 5,882.02, while the mid-cap FTSE 250 rallied even harder, adding 1% at...