London stocks closed higher on Monday, with the FTSE 100 supported by rising oil and gold prices, while European stocks outperformed it ahead of a confidence vote which looks set to oust France's prime minister. The FTSE 100 index closed up 13.23 points, 0.1%, at 9,221.14. The FTSE 250 ended 108.91 points higher, 0.5%, at 21,684.45 and the AIM All-Share finished up 4.10 points, 0.5%, at...

Stocks in Europe were higher on Monday afternoon, despite political uncertainty in France, while gold reached a record high and stocks in the US are set to open in the green amid dovish Federal Reserve expectations. The FTSE 100 index climbed 14.32 points, 0.2%, at 9,222.53. The FTSE 250 was up 141.48 points, 0.7%, at 21,717.02, and the AIM All-Share added 6.79 points, 0.9%, at 772.42. The...

Offer pitched at 16.1% premium Treatt faces stiff headwinds Enlarged entity to compete 'more effectively' Hard-pressed extracts-to-ingredients supplier Treatt (TET) has thrown in the towel and recommended a £156.6 million takeover by private equity-backed Natara after disappointing the market with profit warnings in a tough 2025-to-date. While shares in Treatt sweetened up 17% to 262.2p on...

Stocks opened higher at the start of the week, with gold performing well in the aftermath of Friday's US jobs data, while focus was on Japan and France amid political uncertainty. Japan's prime minister announced he will step down and the future of his French counterpart hangs in the balance also. In the UK, eyes remain on Westminster after UK PM Keir Starmer last week completed a reshuffle of...

Stocks in Europe remained higher at Thursday midday, as the European Central Bank is widely expected not to move interest rates, adopting a wait-and-see stance, while the EU believes a trade deal with the US is 'within reach'. The FTSE 100 index was up 83.71 points, 0.9%, at 9,145.20. The FTSE 250 was up 142.85 points, 0.7%, at 22,156.34, and the AIM All-Share was up 1.20 points, 0.2%, at...

Our portfolio picks for 2025 haven't fared too well in the first half of the year, returning 0.6% compared to a gain of 6.1% from the FTSE All-Share index as of 9 June. It wasn't all bad news, however, as stocks like defence technology group Cohort (CHRT:AIM), premium mixer-maker Fevertree Drinks (FEVR:AIM), airline and package holiday provider Jet2 (JET2:AIM) and infrastructure and...

Treatt (TET) 214p Loss to date: 54% Shares made Treatt (TET) one of our key selections for 2025 at 465p on the basis the extracts-to-ingredients supplier had a recipe for long-term growth and many of the hallmarks of a high-quality company such as a focus on innovation and strong cash generation. We also argued Treatt was well-placed to profit as end-markets recovered from a period of customer...

Sales and earnings guidance lowered Softening US consumer confidence £5 million buyback launched Treatt (TET) shares tumbled almost 25% to a five-year low of 252.2p after the extracts-to-ingredients supplier served up disappointing first half results and downgraded its full year sales and profit guidance. The Suffolk-headquartered supplier of natural ingredients for the beverage, flavour and...

Next year should prove a sweet one for Treatt (TET) and its shareholders. The extracts-to-ingredients supplier has the recipe for long-term growth and many of the hallmarks of a high-quality company including an unwavering focus on innovation, strong cash generation and double-digit returns on both equity and capital employed.Well-placed to profit as its end-markets recover from an unhelpful...

Full year results meet expectationsSigns customers no longer de-stockingWell placed for growth after investmentShares in manufacturer and supplier of natural extracts and ingredients to the beverage, flavour and fragrances industries Treatt (TET) pepped up 12% to 475p after the company said it was seeing early signs of a reversal of customer de-stocking.The shares are down around 15% over the...

- Treatt chairman buys stock after profit warning- The company's CEO also buys shares- ConvaTec non-exec buys after better-than-expected resultsTwo directors bought shares in flavour and fragrance ingredients maker Treatt (TET) on 15 August in the wake of a profits warning which sent shares sliding by over 30%.Chairman Tim Jones purchased 8,944 shares across, taking his total interest to...

- Weaker pound and soft US demand weigh on earnings- Challenges are 'predominantly short term'- Order book up 25% year-on-yearShares in Treatt (TET) tumbled more than 30% to 551p after the natural extracts-to-ingredients supplier warned profits for the year to September 2022 will fall well short of previous forecasts.Although the company still expects to report strong sales growth for the year...

Sanford DeLand's CFP SDL UK Buffettology (BF0LDZ3) and CFP SDL Free Spirit (BYYQC27) funds have forged top-notch long-term performance records since respective launches in 2011 and 2017 thanks to the unwavering pursuit of 'Business Perspective Investing', a quality-focused approach championed by 'Sage of Omaha' Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger.Unusually however, both portfolios managed by...

Supported by a bumper order book, natural extracts-to-ingredients supplier Treat (TET) insisted it is on track to serve up full year pre-tax profits in line with the £21.7 million consensus of analysts' estimates on revenue growth now set to exceed 15%.The shares weakened 7% to 933p as first half results revealed a dip in profits, although this reverse reflected the anticipated return to a...

London's blue chip benchmark closed Friday's session 1.2% lower at 7,466.07 points, while the FTSE 250 finished almost 1% down at 21,643.3, rounding off a volatile week for markets as investors fretted over inflation and rising interest rates as well as the threat of conflict in Ukraine.Despite higher yields, banking stocks dragged on the blue chip benchmark with HSBC (HSBA) off 1.9% at...

Following a reasonably steady start, the FTSE 100 was down materially by midday, with a 1.2% fall to 7,462.81 points, while the FTSE 250 was off 0.8% at 21,673.64.This followed weak trading in the US overnight as well as strength in sterling, which hits the relative value of the overseas earnings which dominate the blue chip benchmark index.Negative sentiment was compounded by persistent...

The FTSE 100 finished Tuesday's trading session 0.71% lower at 7,059.45 points and the FTSE 250 index shed 1.04% to 22,519.72, as markets continued to worry about the potential impacts of the ominously-named new Covid variant, Omicron.Sentiment weakened after Moderna chief executive Stephane Bancel cast doubts over the efficacy of existing vaccines against the coronavirus variant, although...

UK investors have witnessed a steady if unspectacular pandemic recovery for UK shares in the main. But some parts of the market have bounced further and faster, and the BlackRock Smaller Companies Trust (BRSC) is a great way to tap into the strength of the UK smaller company universe at a larger than usual discount to net asset value.In 2021 the FTSE Small Cap index has risen 22% while the...

Constituents of the UK chemicals sector span both a wide range of market capitalisations and end markets.These include aerospace, automotive, coatings, semiconductors, sports and leisure and the global flavour and fragrance industries. The largest company in the UK chemicals sector, Croda (CRDA) has a market capitalization of £12.6 billion, this contrasts with AIM-quoted Biome Technologies...

UK stocks represent a 'once in a generation' opportunity for investors, say fund managers. After years dogged by political and economic uncertainty, and soggy stock market performance, this is a welcome change of mood music.'UK equities are on a 30 year low versus peers, and we see this as a once in a generation opportunity to get involved in some fantastic businesses,' said Rory Bateman,...