Latest news with #Coatsworth
Yahoo
02-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Gen Z worker happy to cop 'diabolical' four-hour commute: 'Worth it'
A Gen Z worker has shared why she loves heading into the office, despite her commute taking a staggering four hours a day. While many Aussie workers have pushed back against moves to end work-from-home privileges, the marketing worker said she believes there are certain things you just can't get working from home. Ebony Coatsworth lives in the seaside town of Torquay and commutes into the Melbourne CBD for her job at Melbourne Social Co. The 27-year-old social media executive told Yahoo Finance the trip took around two hours door-to-door each way, and that's if she's lucky enough to avoid delays. 'I have been travelling into the CBD for this job for the last six months and I am in the office three days a week,' she said. RELATED Single mum's 5-hour commute exposes $5,000-a-year issue with WFH backflip Aussie 'dream' falls apart four months after young expat's arrival with $20,000: 'In Canada everything's free' Commonwealth Bank confirms $50,000 move for first-home buyers: 'Game changer' While some workers might balk at the long commute, Coatsworth said it was 'worth it' because she loves her job and is genuinely excited to go to work each day. 'They are a best-in-class agency and I was not going to pass up the opportunity to work there just because I don't live around the corner,' she said. 'As much as I love working in Melbourne, I love where I live. I love being able to walk to the beach, spend my weekends down the coast and live around the corner from my sisters.' Coatsworth previously worked in the fitness industry but decided to change careers and go back to uni to study marketing after becoming 'completely burned out'. Coastsworth said she uses her commute to work on her personal brand and the two podcasts she hosts. She said she finds the commute 'incredibly productive'. 'I am not twiddling my thumbs on the V/Line, I am working towards my career goals,' she said. Work from home has become a hot political debate in recent weeks after the Coalition revealed plans to get public servants back into the office full-time. Major companies like Amazon, Tab Corp, Flight Centre and Dell have recently ended work-from-home privileges for staff. Other companies have set in-office mandates and are reeling in WFH days, with Woolworths Group recently announcing its 10,00 office support workers would be required to come in three days a week by October. Coatsworth said she thinks it's important for workers, especially those starting out their careers, to come into the office at least once or twice a week. 'I think entirely remote roles are a massive disservice to young career women, to their learning, their development and their confidence,' she told Yahoo Finance. 'Seeing how my managers carry themselves, how they show up to work, how they speak to others and how they interact with clients has shaped me and how I show up in my own career. 'Proximity is so important and I always want to surround myself with other high performers, you don't get that in your home office.' While she sees the value of coming into the office, Coatsworth admitted she wouldn't be able to manage commuting into the office full-time. 'As much as I say I don't mind commuting, I just simply couldn't manage this five days a week,' she said. She said she felt 'really lucky' that her boss had never enforced coming into the office full-time, even before the pandemic. Coatsworth recently shared a video of her office commute online showing her leaving the house just before 6:30am to arrive at work at 8:30am. Many were shocked by how long her commute took. 'I love my job and it's 20 mins walk to the office…. Long commutes are just diabolical to me sorry,' one said. 'I did this for several years after I finished uni, I was single and living at home. But after a few years it felt unsustainable,' another said. 'Just not worth it everyday,' a third added. Others said they would 'stop whinging' about their own commutes after seeing Coastworth's video. 'Not me with my 35 min train having a sook, wow,' one said. 'I have a one-hour commute and I'm so dramatic about it,' another said. Coastworth said she was used to her commute and liked it, even though it was hard for some people online to believe. 'I love my job and I love where I live, so much so that it makes me emotional,' she said. 'I wake up every day excited to go to work and drive home from the station every night excited to see my partner. I feel incredibly lucky and grateful.'Sign in to access your portfolio
The Independent
07-03-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Airlines, tech and gold: The most popular stocks and funds investors are buying ahead of the ISA deadline
Isa season is rapidly approaching: the end of one financial year and the start of the next one, with investors (and savers!) trying to use up as much of their allowance as possible before 5 April, at which point the £20,000 annual allowance per person resets. While there is ongoing discussion over whether Cash Isa limits could be cut, the overall allowance is a use it or lose it situation - unused allowances cannot be rolled over into the next financial year. At the start of 2025, investors in stocks and shares Isas have been putting money into a range of individual companies and funds hoping to generate returns which can help beat inflation and even interest rates, particularly over the longer term. AJ Bell, one of the UK's largest investment platforms, has shared data on what their Isa customers have been purchasing this year - with some familiar names among the top ten businesses being bought alongside some perhaps more surprising ones. American chipmaker Nvidia, formerly the most valuable listed company on the planet, holds top spot at the start of the year on the platform and is followed by MicroStrategy, a company which essentially buys up bitcoin and which rebranded to Strategy last month. British businesses in housebuilding, insurance and travel also feature in the most popular list. 'DIY investors have been busy filling their Isas ahead of the tax year-end on 5 April,' says Dan Coatsworth, investment analyst at AJ Bell. 'Isas are a great way to build up wealth and shelter your gains and income from the taxman. 'Exposure to global and US markets and generous dividend payers were key themes, as you might expect from Isa users. However, there were a few surprises including a shift in behaviour by investment trust fans, and stock investors were taking quite a few contrarian bets.' From bitcoin to trainers, houses to energy Those contrarian bets perhaps include fashion shoe retailer JD Sports, a long-time favourite of British investors but one whose share price is down more than 40 per cent across the past six months. Airline Easyjet is up three per cent across the same timeframe, but is down ten per cent over a year. The full list of most popular stocks and shares on the platform, by net flows from 1 January to 28 February, were: These choices could be grouped into three different categories, added Mr Coatsworth, including 'higher-risk investments linked to cryptocurrencies and AI, generous dividend payers such as retirement savings group Phoenix, and out of favour companies where investors are potentially buying in the hope of a rebound.' Spread your eggs across multiple baskets Outside of individual shares, data on funds which offer a more diversified approach showed an ongoing preference by investors for low-cost passive or tracker shares, as opposed to more expensive actively managed funds. Funds typically focus on a sector, theme or geographic region, so an S&P 500 fund for example tracks the performance of the biggest companies in the United States, while a physical gold fund would seek to follow the performance of the precious metal's price by holding bullion. AJ Bell's most popular list of funds were as follows: 'UK investors are increasingly losing faith in the ability for fund managers to consistently outperform the market. By shunning active funds, investors are choosing the lower cost route of simply tracking the market. It's easy to see why,' Mr Coatsworth said. 'Research by AJ Bell recently found that less than a third (31 per cent) of actively managed funds have beaten a passive alternative over the past 10 years.' Finally, data on investment trusts also shows the yield on offer from payouts. Weakening share prices in some areas, and widening discounts to the Net Asset Value (NAV) of them have pushed yields up in some cases. Here are the top ten trusts on AJ's platform this year and their yields at the time of publishing: City of London Investment Trust - 4.7% TwentyFour Select Monthly Income - 8.5% JPMorgan Global Growth & Income - 3.9% Law Debenture - 3.5% 3i Group - 1.5% The Renewables Infrastructure Group - 10.0% Greencoat UK Wind - 9.1% Henderson Far East Income - 11.3% Abrdn European Logistics Income - 6.1% Supermarket Income REIT - 8.8% 'Investors may view such trusts as bargains given many trade on large discounts to the value of their underlying portfolio. Large yields offer compensation for the shares being out of favour but there is still uncertainty in when or if those discounts will start to narrow,' Mr Coatsworth noted. All profits from dividends or capital appreciation are tax-free when made in an Isa wrapper.
Yahoo
15-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
High or low risk? Here's where DIY investors are putting their money
Individual savings accounts (ISAs) continue to be a popular savings method in the UK, with an allowance of up to £20,000 in the 2024-2025 tax year, and tax-free interest earned on the funds. This applies to both capital gains or income from investments in ISAs, as well as interest on cash. There are four types of ISAs, namely cash, stocks and shares, innovative finance and lifetime ISAs, which all serve different purposes. So which are the most popular ISA investments? In January 2025, AJ Bell DIY customers took on a higher amount of risk, while spreading out their investments across funds, investment trusts and shares on the AJ Bell platform. Among funds, tracker funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) were the most popular. Based on net flows, Fidelity Index World, Vanguard S&P 500 ETF, HSBC FTSE All World Index, Vanguard LifeStrategy 100% Equity and L&G Global Technology Trust were the most popular funds. Dan Coatsworth, investment analyst at AJ Bell, said in an email note: "Exposure to global markets and the tech sector topped the list of places investors deployed money, suggesting they started the new year hoping for broad-based gains on equity markets or a third year in a row for tech sector strength. "Investors use ISAs for lots of different reasons, some saving for a specific goal and others simply squirreling money away for another day. The one thing that unites all these different people is the ability to protect your capital gains and dividends from the taxman." Related New year, new habits? A guide to investing that covers the basics Coatsworth also pointed out: "The top five most popular funds were all passive vehicles – index funds or ETFs tracking an index – which reinforces the view that more people are turning their back on active managers. It's very hard for a fund manager to outperform the market year in, year out, and investors are increasingly opting for the lower-cost passive route which simply moves in line with a specific market or index. "Certain investors are still happy to lean on an expert in the hope of added gains. Investment trusts remain popular with DIY investors and this type of investment is universally an actively managed one." Coming to the most popular investment trusts for ISA investments, JPMorgan Global Growth & Income took the top spot once again among AJ Bell DIY investors in January. Other popular investment trusts included Scottish Mortgage, The Renewables Infrastructure Group, Law Debenture and 3i Group. Coatsworth said: "JPMorgan Global Growth & Income has been a firm favourite among AJ Bell customers for some time and it is once again at the top of the most popular investment trusts list. Providing exposure to growing companies and with decent income offers the best of both worlds to investors. "Over five years, JPMorgan Global Growth & Income has returned 113% versus 110% from the US index. No other global equity income investment trust has kept pace with the S&P 500 over those five years, let alone come anywhere close. It's no wonder that investors remain big fans of JPMorgan Global Growth & Income." Related New to investing? Here's where to start with selecting a portfolio manager Nvidia topped the list of most popular shares in January, mainly driven by its consistently robust performance in the last two years, boosted by increased demand for AI. Other popular shares included National Grid, GSK, MicroStrategy and Advanced Micro Devices. Coatsworth highlighted: "Nvidia was the most popular share among AJ Bell DIY investor customers in January, based on net flows of money on the platform. Having delivered stellar gains in 2023 and 2024 amid excitement around AI, investors buying shares in 2025 are taking the view there is still a significant opportunity for Nvidia to grow its earnings at a high rate. "The second most popular share was National Grid, which is the polar opposite to Nvidia – stodgy and boring with no exciting narrative. Instead, it's all about scooping up regular dividends. "Electricity transmission may lack the sparkle of Nvidia's stellar AI opportunity, yet to some people the idea of sitting back and collecting a steady stream of income from dividends is much more satisfying. National Grid offers a 4.7% dividend which puts it on the cusp of the top quartile yields for FTSE 100 stocks." Although Nvidia saw a surge in DIY investments in January, there are increasing concerns about the outlook of the company following rival Chinese AI app DeepSeek launching its latest model recently. Financial disclaimer: This information does not constitute financial advice, always do your own research on top to ensure it's right for your specific circumstances. Also remember, we are a journalistic website and aim to provide the best guides, tips and advice from experts. If you rely on the information on this page, then you do so entirely at your own risk. Sign in to access your portfolio
Euronews
15-02-2025
- Business
- Euronews
High or low risk? Here's where DIY investors are putting their money
Individual savings accounts (ISAs) continue to be a popular savings method in the UK, with an allowance of up to £20,000 in the 2024-2025 tax year, and tax-free interest earned on the funds. This applies to both capital gains or income from investments in ISAs, as well as interest on cash. There are four types of ISAs, namely cash, stocks and shares, innovative finance and lifetime ISAs, which all serve different purposes. So which are the most popular ISA investments? Passive investing beats active In January 2025, AJ Bell DIY customers took on a higher amount of risk, while spreading out their investments across funds, investment trusts and shares on the AJ Bell platform. Among funds, tracker funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) were the most popular. Based on net flows, Fidelity Index World, Vanguard S&P 500 ETF, HSBC FTSE All World Index, Vanguard LifeStrategy 100% Equity and L&G Global Technology Trust were the most popular funds. Dan Coatsworth, investment analyst at AJ Bell, said in an email note: "Exposure to global markets and the tech sector topped the list of places investors deployed money, suggesting they started the new year hoping for broad-based gains on equity markets or a third year in a row for tech sector strength. "Investors use ISAs for lots of different reasons, some saving for a specific goal and others simply squirreling money away for another day. The one thing that unites all these different people is the ability to protect your capital gains and dividends from the taxman." Coatsworth also pointed out: "The top five most popular funds were all passive vehicles – index funds or ETFs tracking an index – which reinforces the view that more people are turning their back on active managers. It's very hard for a fund manager to outperform the market year in, year out, and investors are increasingly opting for the lower-cost passive route which simply moves in line with a specific market or index. "Certain investors are still happy to lean on an expert in the hope of added gains. Investment trusts remain popular with DIY investors and this type of investment is universally an actively managed one." JPMorgan Global Growth & Income continues to top investment trusts Coming to the most popular investment trusts for ISA investments, JPMorgan Global Growth & Income took the top spot once again among AJ Bell DIY investors in January. Other popular investment trusts included Scottish Mortgage, The Renewables Infrastructure Group, Law Debenture and 3i Group. Coatsworth said: "JPMorgan Global Growth & Income has been a firm favourite among AJ Bell customers for some time and it is once again at the top of the most popular investment trusts list. Providing exposure to growing companies and with decent income offers the best of both worlds to investors. "Over five years, JPMorgan Global Growth & Income has returned 113% versus 110% from the US index. No other global equity income investment trust has kept pace with the S&P 500 over those five years, let alone come anywhere close. It's no wonder that investors remain big fans of JPMorgan Global Growth & Income." Soaring artificial intelligence demand driving Nvidia popularity Nvidia topped the list of most popular shares in January, mainly driven by its consistently robust performance in the last two years, boosted by increased demand for AI. Other popular shares included National Grid, GSK, MicroStrategy and Advanced Micro Devices. Coatsworth highlighted: "Nvidia was the most popular share among AJ Bell DIY investor customers in January, based on net flows of money on the platform. Having delivered stellar gains in 2023 and 2024 amid excitement around AI, investors buying shares in 2025 are taking the view there is still a significant opportunity for Nvidia to grow its earnings at a high rate. "The second most popular share was National Grid, which is the polar opposite to Nvidia – stodgy and boring with no exciting narrative. Instead, it's all about scooping up regular dividends. "Electricity transmission may lack the sparkle of Nvidia's stellar AI opportunity, yet to some people the idea of sitting back and collecting a steady stream of income from dividends is much more satisfying. National Grid offers a 4.7% dividend which puts it on the cusp of the top quartile yields for FTSE 100 stocks." Although Nvidia saw a surge in DIY investments in January, there are increasing concerns about the outlook of the company following rival Chinese AI app DeepSeek launching its latest model recently. Financial disclaimer: This information does not constitute financial advice, always do your own research on top to ensure it's right for your specific circumstances. Also remember, we are a journalistic website and aim to provide the best guides, tips and advice from experts. If you rely on the information on this page, then you do so entirely at your own risk.
