As we approach the end of the year it is an opportune moment to shine a light on some of this year's least-loved stocks.Rather than look at the stocks which have lost the most, we have collected together those trading at or near their lows for the year along with those with the fewest friends in the analyst community and those which the hedge fund community thinks are outright shorts.If we...

Shares slide as much as 25%Auditor's opinion revealed in annual reportVictoria imposed 'Limitation of scope'Shares in carpet and flooring firm Victoria (VCP:AIM) have taken a beating just days after releasing its audited results for the year to the start of April.Following a weak opening, down 4%, the shares continued to slide during the morning session to trade as much as 25% lower at 411.5p...

Institutional investors continue to bet against consumer-facing companies, despite the International Monetary Fund predicting that advanced economies including the UK could return to ultra-low interest rates once inflation is tamed.The IMF argues recent increases in interest rates are likely to prove temporary. When inflation is brought back under control, it says central banks are likely to...

Inflation, supply chain issues and soaring fuel prices have dominated UK market chatter for months but on Wednesday investors were obsessed by THG (THG).The online beauty and health products seller, also known as The Hut Group, continued to fall on after a torrid Tuesday during which it saw its share price lose more than a third of its value. A presentation to analysts and key investors...

UK stocks rose in early trading on Tuesday, paring some of Monday's steep losses, as investors attempted to balance reopening optimism with an accompanying surge in coronavirus infections.At 8.30, the benchmark FTSE 100 index was up 1.2% at 6,923.64 points, having closed 2.3% lower on Monday, or so-called Freedom Day.Leading the charge were miners, oil producers and banks, all sectors highly...

London's FTSE 100 opened higher on the first trading day of June, buoyed by resources plays as global recovery hopes drove further rises in commodities prices.By 8.30 am, the benchmark FTSE 100 index was up 0.5% at 7,057.54 points with mining giants BHP (BHP), Glencore (GLEN) and Rio Tinto (RIO) leading blue chip gains, rising 2.8% to £21.83, 2.7% to 330p and 3.4% to £62.67 respectively.News...

London's FTSE 100 plunged deeply into the red by close on Tuesday, reversing significant earlier gains as concerns over a global chip shortage sparked a tech sell-off in the US.The global shortage of semiconductors has put pressure on tech and carmaker stocks, which are leading the falls. The UK's benchmark index fell back below 7,000 to close 0.67% lower to 6,923.In the US the tech-heavy...

London's FTSE 100 gained 0.82% by lunchtime on Tuesday to reach 7,026.99, jumping back above the psychologically important 7,000 level as investors looked to the reopening and holidays starting again.Travel stocks in particular have been buoyed on hopes of EU tourism opening up again next month, with British Airways owner International Consolidated Airlines (IAG) gaining 2.8% to 208.5p, while...

UK stocks got off to a firm start to trading following the holiday-extended weekend with economically sensitive sectors, including miners, travel and energy, driving gains.The benchmark FTSE 100 opened around 0.6% higher, pushing back above the 7,000 market at 7,011.80 with Fresnillio's (FRES) near 3.5% at 851.4p leading the index. Travel and leisure companies also saw firm demand as Brits...

UK stocks ended Monday's session in the red as the reopening of shops and pubs across the UK failed to generate much of a market reaction.Caution prevailed as many investors decided to hold off on any big decisions as first quarter earnings season picks up pace in the US.'UK markets have remained pretty subdued as they seemed to have priced in today's lockdown easing exuberance,' explained...

London's FTSE 100 ended Wednesday's session broadly flat, closing 0.13% lower at 6,745.5 points. The blue chip benchmark recovered losses from earlier in the day as stocks opened higher in the US ahead of a House of Representatives debate on an impeachment of US president Donald Trump.Companies served up a mixed bag of updates, among them food delivery company Just Eat Takeaway.com (JET),...

London's FTSE 100 was broadly flat by midday on Wednesday, off a mere 0.2% at 6739.7 points as investors weighed vaccine optimism with lockdown fallout fears, while companies released a mixed bag of updates.Among them was food delivery company Just Eat Takeaway.com (JET), which fell 4.1% to £86.98 despite expecting annual revenue growth of more than 50% after reporting a 57% rise in order...

The majority of director deals over the past week have involved significant share sales, the most interesting of which comes from online travel platform Trainline (TRN).Chief financial officer Shaun McCabe sold 600,000 shares in the business at a price of 480p each, netting a total of £2.88 million.The sale comes after a big rally in Trainline shares, which have jumped from 256.8p on 2...

One of the most striking features of the current crisis, from a stock market perspective, is how sharply and suddenly UK firms have cut their dividends in response to the drop in demand for their goods or services.In March alone, UK companies cancelled or postponed more than £4bn in forecast dividend payments. Both the speed and the size of the cuts are unprecedented.Last week, housebuilders...

UK stocks opened substantially higher on Wednesday, with the FTSE 100 up 212.3 points at 5,658.32 early on, after US lawmakers reached agreement on a $2trn stimulus package to buffer the world's biggest economy from the still-spreading coronavirus.Housebuilder Persimmon (PSN) perked up 3.7% to £17.55 even after it scrapped one planned dividend payment and postponed another as it braces for a...

London's FTSE 100 shed 9.1 points to trade at 7,273 on Tuesday as political uncertainty caused sterling to drop below $1.20 for the first time since 2017. This weighed on the UK-focused FTSE 250, dragging it back by 26 points to 19,456 and is also bad news for UK domestic FTSE 100 stocks including the housebuilders, supermarkets and various banks.Plumbing and heating products distributor...

US President Donald Trump's latest trade war tariff threat weighs on sentiment on Tuesday, with the FTSE 100 cheapening 17.4 points to 7, 363.2. However, weakness among banks and utilities is being softened by strength among pharma and mining stocks and investors are perhaps taking some comfort in the news that China's vice-premier Liu He will travel to the US for another round of trade talks...

Director dealings can provide a useful pointer for investors as management have a deep pool of knowledge about their firm and insider buying and selling can sometimes be an indication of the health of the business.Saying that, investors shouldn't jump to conclusions when directors sell shares as this can sometimes be prompted by tax liabilities or it may be the first opportunity for management...

The FTSE 100 starts the week on the back foot although it is still holding on to a position north of 7,200, down 0.37% at 7,210.16 in early trading. An uptick in the pound contributing to the weaker open.Consumer goods giant Reckitt Benckiser (RB.) reports a 65% drop in annual profit owing to one-off gains and expenses but underlying earnings are up as the company hit the top end of its sales...

First half results (18 Jan) from Henderson Smaller Companies Investment Trust (HSL) reveal a rare period of underperformance.But manager Neil Hermon, who has outperformed the benchmark in 14 of the past 15 financial years, insists his universe 'continues to throw up exciting growth opportunities' and M&A 'remains a supportive feature'.For the six months ended 30 November, the trust delivered a...