Prime minister Rishi Sunak has floated and announced big policy changes recently from delaying a ban of the sales of new petrol and diesel cares, pulling back on phasing out gas boilers and introducing a New Zealand-style anti-smoking policy.There has also been the public discussion of abandoning or at least curtailing the zero-carbon high-speed railway to the north of England - better known...

UK stocks started the week cautiously, in spite of a raft of earnings upgrades, after another weak session in Asia where stocks in China and Japan were down 2% and 1% respectively as the Evergrande saga rumbled on.In energy markets, the focus was on the meeting of OPEC+ oil producers for any decision on whether to increase crude production, after a sharp rally in oil and gas prices this year....

UK stocks shrugged off concerns over the country's vaccine programme to continue their upward march so far this week.Medicines regulator the MHRA this afternoon stated under-30s should be offered an alternative to the AstraZeneca (AZN) jab where possible due to concerns over the link between the vaccine and blood clots.While this is better than an outright ban on use of the vaccine for...

London's FTSE 100 continued its strong momentum this week with a 0.8% gain to 6,877.86 by Wednesday lunchtime, following on from yesterday's 1.3% increase, as reopening optimism grows among investors.With the UK's lockdown set for another round of easing next Monday, businesses are gearing up for a resumption of trading that saw a flash PMI reading surge last month.The latest IHS Markit/CIPS...

The UK's major stocks started strongly on Wednesday as the nation starts its Moderna vaccine rollout, the third approved for Brits, reigniting reopening optimism among investors.With the UK's lockdown set for another round of easing next Monday, businesses are gearing up for a resumption of trading that saw a flash PMI reading surge last month. Later today investors will get an idea of the...

Shares in equipment rental firm VP (VP.) dipped 3.8% to 760p, despite news of a special dividend, after it posted a 24% drop in revenues and a pre-tax loss for the first half to the end of September as the Covid pandemic curtailed activity in most of its markets.Although it faced a near-50% collapse in revenues in the early months of the crisis, many of its businesses were categorized as...

Equipment rental specialist VP Group (VP.) reported record profits after tax, amortisation and exceptional items, but before adjustments for leases, of £47.1m for the year ended 31 March. Meanwhile return on capital employed remained a healthy 14.5%.However the shares eased 2.4% to 781p on the news that a decision on whether to pay the final 2019 dividend would be postponed until later in the...

UK stocks rallied on Wednesday after two days of losses with domestically focused banks and insurers the main drivers amid thin corporate news.Leading the gains were Lloyds Bank (LLOY) and Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) up 3% apiece to 36.3p and 135p respectively, supported by insurers RSA (RSA) and Phoenix (PHNX) up 2% to 423p and 675p respectively.At 9am the FTSE 100 index was up 0.4% to 6,360...

Global growth concerns and a sharp sell-off in US technology stocks yesterday put pressure on the FTSE 100 with the index trading down 13 points at 7,170 early on.Grabbing the headlines are shares in Woodford Patient Capital Trust (WPCT), which are trading down 9% to 69.5p following the suspension of the LF Woodford Equity Income Fund (BLRZQ62) yesterday. After today's fall the trust now...

Investors in equipment-rental firm VP (VP.) breathe a sigh of relief after the firm delivers a positive set of full year results and an upbeat outlook for this year.Revenues for the year to 31 March are up 26% to £383m thanks to the consolidation of the Brandon Hire business while pre-tax profits are up 9% to £33.6m. Shares rally 8% to 800p on the news.READ MORE ABOUT VP HEREShares in VP...

Led by the UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), anti-trust regulators around the world are having a bigger say than ever in corporate affairs. While this is good news for consumers, for investors the regulators represent another level of risk and complexity.There are many current examples involving UK-quoted shares such as news last week that the CMA was opening a full investigation...

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has bared its teeth for the third time this week with the threat of an in-depth investigation into the sale of Mitie's (MTO) pest control business to Rentokil Initial (RTO) in October 2018.This is the latest in a lengthening list of mergers targeted by an apparently more aggressive UK competition watchdog.Other companies to fall foul of the UK...

VP Group (VP.) 916pLoss to date: 8.4%Original entry point: Buy at £10.00, 29 November 2018There is good and bad news for equipment rental firm VP Group (VP.) which has made us reappraise the investment case.Its UK division has seen steady demand in its core sectors of infrastructure, construction and housebuilding, while the integration of Brandon Hire (purchased in November 2017) should be...

London's FTSE 100 is struggling for direction on Tuesday, bid up a meagre 0.73 points to 7,453 as investors grapple with Brexit uncertainty and the ramping up of trade war tensions between the US and the EU and housebuilders and utilities weigh on the blue chip benchmark.Drugs giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) is unable to shake off the wider market malaise, the shares marked down 4.6p to £15.84...

The FTSE 100 endures a subdued start, down 0.3% to 7,424,93, taking its cue from a lukewarm showing on the Asian market overnight.Oil prices hit their highest level so far in 2019 as Libyan output is affected by the long-running civil war in the country.Mike Ashley's Sports Direct (SPD) says it has offered to underwrite a £150m equity raising by struggling department store Debenhams (DEB).The...

UK stocks fall in line with continental Europe and US index futures as worries over the strength of the US economy begin to weigh on sentiment. In early trade the FTSE 100 index gives up almost 2% to 6,792.10, a new two-year low, while the FTSE 250 gives up 1.5% to a low for the year of 17,995 points.Tomorrow sees the release of three closely-watched indicators of the health of the US economy...

One recurring theme when polling UK fund managers on their current stock picks is that they are rejoicing at the chance to buy high-quality businesses on single-digit earnings multiples.VP Group (VP.), the specialist equipment rental firm, was almost trading on a single-digit rating earlier this month despite generating a return on average capital employed of 15% in the last financial year.It...

A well-known fund manager who in his previous job generated nearly four times as much money for investors than the broader market is back with a new fund.Paul Marriage made his name at Cazenove and Schroders, particularly with Schroder UK Dynamic Small Companies Fund (0721936) which returned 435% versus 114% from the benchmark FTSE Small Cap index in the 11 years he ran the fund.Marriage left...

Profit takers emerge after yesterday's strong gains for the FTSE 100 on an exceptionally quiet day in terms of corporate news.Not helping sentiment is president Donald Trump's overnight threat to impose $100bn worth of further tariffs on Chinese goods. In early trading the index of leading UK shares is down nearly 0.2% at 7,186.87.Equipment hire business Vp (VP.) gains 3.4% to 847.8p as it...

'It has been a good year, but it is still early days,' says Rosemary Banyard, manager of the CFP SDL Free Spirit (GB00BYYQC271) fund, a £7.2m OEIC which has just celebrated its one-year anniversary (3 Jan 2018).The investment objective of this concentrated fund is to achieve real growth in capital and income over the long term, through investments mainly in UK equities listed on the LSE, AIM...