General News

Epidemic Over? Unable to Trade and Chrysalis VCT Wind-Up

Pandemic News The news that the Pfizer vaccine for Covid-19 appears to work (at least 90% of the time) and has no negative side effects gave stock markets a good dose of euphoria yesterday (9th November). It suggests that we might be able to return to a normal life in future, but exactly when is far from clear. Actually producing and distributing the vaccine is going to be a mammoth task and it is very clear that it will only be given ...

Market Musings

The stock market seems to be positively benign at present, if not almost somnambulant. While certain sections of the economy have gone to hell in a handcart, the enthusiasm for technology stocks has not abated. My very diversified portfolio is up today at the time of writing by 0.4% helped by good news from Dotdigital (DOTD) today and a sudden enthusiasm for GB Group (GBG). Optimism about a more general recovery in the economy seems to be still prevalent. It’s probably a ...

New podcast on trading and investing

Like all the directors of ShareSoc, I am an active investor, and over the past couple of years have learned a lot being part of a chatroom with other investors and traders. We all have different styles and it is fascinating seeing how others approach the business of making money in the markets. For a few months my chatroom friend Dave and I have toyed with launching a podcast, because we both like talking and are interested in stock market history and ...

How important is the Individual Shareholder to UK PLC in the current climate?

On Thursday 7 May 2020 The LSE and Primary Bid ran a webinar on How important is the Individual to UK PLC in the current climate? There was an impressive panel made up of: Gavin Oldham, Chairman - Share Centre Richard Wilson, CEO - interactive investor Angela Knight CBE Andy Edmond, CEO, Equity Development Marcus Stuttard, Head of UK Primary Markets and AIM - London Stock Exchange plc The Chairman was  James Deal, COO - PrimaryBid The topics  discussed were: The daily trading ...

Justin King ex-Sainsburys CEO – Supermarket Supply Chains, Profits and Share Prices

In the present environment its useful to get some insights into what’s happening in the food retail sector and how it's impacting the major players. I came across this 10 minute interview with Justin King which was filmed at the end of March and thought it may be of interest to members. Justin King, Formerly CEO of Sainsbury's and now an advisor to Supermarket Income REIT (LON: SUPR), answers a series of questions for the investor community. Justin discusses the supermarket sector. ...

Elroy Dimson: Coronavirus and the markets

Live Webinar – Tuesday April 7th, 2020 at 11:00 AM In this live webinar Professor Elroy Dimson, world-renowned financial historian, will be sharing his views on the coronavirus crisis...

Recent Annual Reports and Trust Discounts

After the news over the weekend, it’s clearly going to be another very bad day on stock markets. One rare riser initially was Ten Entertainment Group (TEG) despite the...

Market Crash and Abcam Impact from Coronavirus

This morning (9th March) my stock market portfolio was a sea of red – down 5.6% at the time of writing at 9.30 am.  Not only have most shares fallen, but spreads have widened so it’s not even easy to pick up those shares that are now undervalued at a fair price. I think the answer here is to wait until the immediate panic is over before making any more decisions to buy or sell. The major impacts on shares have been ...

Objections to Pay at Diploma and the Cost of Zero Carbon

My previous blog post covered the subject of criticism by Slater Investments of many current pay schemes. That at Diploma (DPLM) is a typical example. But at their Annual...

LSE Consultation on Market Structure and Trading Hours

The London Stock Exchange launched a consultation last week on the subject topic. You can find this consultation here: https://www.londonstockexchange.com/traders-and-brokers/rules-regulations/change-and-updates/stock-exchange-notices/2019/n1819_attach1.pdf I will compile a response to this consultation for...