Stocks in London soared as confidence rose that long-awaited interest rates cuts were close after a dovish hold by the Bank of England.The FTSE 100 index ended up 145.17 points, 1.9%, at 7,882.55. The FTSE 250 closed up 256.91 points, 1.3%, at 19,741.31, and the AIM All-Share rose 5.05 points, 0.7%, at 740.64.The Cboe UK 100 ended up 1.8% at 788.77, the Cboe UK 250 rose 1.3% to 17,156.47, though t

London?s FTSE 100 underperformed on Friday, with its heavyweight pharmaceutical firms among the worst performers, as a post-Federal Reserve decision rally gave way to some profit taking.There were also some hawkish words from a US policymaker which kept enthusiasm to a minimum, though stocks in New York made a strong start.The FTSE 100 index gave back 72.62 points, 1.0%, at 7,576.36. It had surged

Full-year results to be published on 26 September from consumer goods firm PZ Cussons (PZC) come hot on the heels of the company's announcement that it plans to take full control of its Nigerian business.This decision may come under some scrutiny as the impact of the devaluation of the Nigerian naira could well mar the upcoming numbers. Volatility in the currency and the country itself has been a

London's FTSE 100 ate into some of its weekly loss on Friday, supported by share price hikes for mining firms, though the precarious US debt ceiling situation continues to be in focus.The pound was on the up as some dollar strength abated, and after a Bank of England decision maker said more rate hikes could be on the way.The FTSE 100 index opened up 20.38 points, 0.3%, at 7,591.25. The blue-chip

A busy week for economic data gets off to a positive start in the UK with markets on the front foot as investors embraced the government's first moves to ease pandemic lockdown measures.Both the benchmark FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 mid cap indexes made early gains on Monday despite the absence of major corporate news, rising around 1% apiece to 5,994.32 and 16,414.81, outstripping gains on major Europe

Two company bosses have put a big show of faith in their businesses over the past week after buying big chunks of shares.Chuk Kin Lau, CEO and executive director at coffee table book publisher Quarto (QRT), bought 9.4m shares at 68p each as part of a share offer which aims to reduce the company's bank debt.Quarto raised £13.9m in total with Lau taking up 42.6%, or £6.39m worth, of the shares off

London's FTSE 100 edged 8.6 points higher to 7,549.4 on Thursday with investors in cautious mood ahead of the holiday season and the Bank of England's interest rate decision at midday, with no change to the cost of borrowing anticipated. Markets seemed to shrug their shoulders following the impeachment of Donald Trump, who became only the third President in US history to be impeached.Family-contro

Online gaming marketer XLMedia (XLM:AIM) continues a miserable 12 months as it says a retreat from its media buying business will hit financial performance in 2018 and 2019. The stock is down 33.4% to 52p.The Israeli firm helps direct players to web-based gambling through a portfolio of more than 2,300 websites - its publishing arm - in return for a revenue share. Sites typically are gambling port

The FTSE 100 starts Tuesday on the back foot as reports of a delay to Brexit help lift the pound. A big chunk of the sales generated by constituents of the index comes from overseas. Stronger sterling means they carry less weight in relative terms. Early on the FTSE is down 0.9% to 7,121.51.Miner Fresnillo (FRES) slumps 8.8% to 890.3p as it reports a sharp decline in annual profits as record silve

Online gambling marketing business XLMedia (XLM) breaks a good run of beating expectations and raising guidance with a surprise profit warning. That causes its share price to dive 28% to 123.7p.In an otherwise positive article on the investment case we recently flagged the risks associated with regulation and these are evident in the latest trading update.The company cites 'the closure of the Aust

The FTSE 100 gets off to a strong start for the week, up 0.5% to 7,715.82 ahead of US president Donald Trump's pivotal summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.Aircraft engine manufacturer Rolls-Royce (RR.) slips 1% to 827.4p as it reveals a mechanical problem in a second class of engine and says it will have to carry out more inspections.The company had already warned of durability issue affec

Online gaming marketing firm XLMedia (XLM:AIM) is fresh from announcing another set of record full year results. But is this growth stock getting the credit it deserves from the market and, if not, why not?The Israeli company helps direct players and customers to online gambling sites through its portfolio of more than 2,300 websites and the purchase of online ads. It receives a share of the reven

After raising less money than desired and taking six months to reach the stock market after announcing its plans last summer, property portal OnTheMarket (OTMP:AIM) tops off its woes with a miserable start to life as a listed company.Its shares were issued at 165p but on its stock market debut today (9 Feb) the stock has fallen 6.7% to 154p. New figures from research group Edison show the busines

There are many good reasons for investors to investigate beyond the scope of the FTSE 100 heavyweights. Smaller companies may start off with share trading liquidity challenges and fall below the remit of most equity research analysts.That can mean companies being priced more inefficiently than larger peers which is an opportunity for savvy investors.PROVEN STRATEGYAs successful smaller companies b

Gambling marketer XLMedia (XLM:AIM) and car dealer Pendragon (PDG) are among Berenberg's top picks for UK mid-cap value stocks. The investment bank thinks these stocks, plus a few others, still offer decent upside to investors despite the broader stock market having already rallied this year.It believes investors could make approximately 20% profit through buying shares in XLMedia. Its 150p, 12-mo

2,300 websitesApproximately 2,300 websites are used by XLMedia's (XLM:AIM) publishing division to drive users to its clients' gambling and social gaming platforms.Berenberg, which rates the shares a 'buy' with a 150p price target, reckons only a 100 of these are generating substantial revenue with the remainder in 'build-up' phase.It is optimistic the publishing arm could beat a 13% growth estimat

Disappointing Chinese trade figures were not sufficient to dim investors' sunny outlook with the FTSE 100 up 0.4% to 6,823.21. It is now up nearly 3% since governor of the Bank of England Mark Carney announced an rate cut to 0.25% and a significant stimulus package.Among the blue chips, drugs firm Shire (SHP) is down 0.4% to £51.25 as it posts in-line interims with total reported product sales up

RESULTS > FINALS > WEDNESDAY 30 MARCHXLMedia (XLM:AIM) 70.1pIsraeli online betting marketer XLMedia (XLM:AIM) may update the market on a possible sale of the business when it reports its 2015 results on 30 March 2016.The £141 million cap launched a strategic review in January 2016 and said it would consider all options to try to maximise shareholder value. It says this could include selling the c

Dixon in major US pushDixons Carphone (DC.) is to strengthen its position in the US market after deciding to roll out a joint venture with mobile network operator Sprint from 15 to 500 stores. It will invest up to $32 million to get a 50% stake in the venture; the cash will be used to fund the roll-out and operation of the stores. (DC)TUI extends Tunisia banTour operator TUI (TUI) has extended its

London stocks sour on opening with blue-chip oil majors wilting alongside crude prices on heightened fears the global supply glut will last longer than expected. Multiple financials, especially banks on PPI worries, and leisure outfits are on the back foot. European markets are down around 2%.Repeating the theme which has dominated 2016 so far the oil and gas sector is again under pressure on furt