Latest news with #LSE
Business Insider
8 hours ago
- Business
- Business Insider
Deutsche Bank Sticks to Its Buy Rating for Vodafone (VOD)
In a report released yesterday, Robert Grindle from Deutsche Bank maintained a Buy rating on Vodafone (VOD – Research Report), with a price target of £1.30. The company's shares closed last Friday at p76.88. Confident Investing Starts Here: Grindle covers the Communication Services sector, focusing on stocks such as Vodafone, Deutsche Telekom, and BT Group plc. According to TipRanks, Grindle has an average return of 3.4% and a 57.32% success rate on recommended stocks. In addition to Deutsche Bank , Vodafone also received a Buy from DZ BANK AG's Matthias Volkert in a report issued on May 20. However, on the same day, J.P. Morgan maintained a Sell rating on Vodafone (LSE: VOD). The company has a one-year high of p79.50 and a one-year low of p62.40. Currently, Vodafone has an average volume of 101.5M. Based on the recent corporate insider activity of 43 insiders, corporate insider sentiment is positive on the stock. This means that over the past quarter there has been an increase of insiders buying their shares of VOD in relation to earlier this year.
Yahoo
18 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
£10,000 invested in Greggs shares 1 month ago is now worth…
From the start of May, Greggs (LSE:GRG) shares have been faring pretty well, climbing an impressive 12.1%. If an investor had put £10,000 into its shares at the time, their position would be worth £12,080 today. Therefore, they would have an unrealised profit of £2,080. That's not bad at all for one month. However, not all has been plain sailing for shareholders of the bakery chain. The company's shares have fallen by 27.1% since the start of the year. A £10,000 investment then would only be worth £7,295 today. Not so pleasant. So, let's look at why this happened and what's causing the recent optimism. Most of Gregg's share price drop this year occurred in January, when it released its fourth-quarter trading update. Initially, its results appeared solid as sales were up 7.7% from the year-ago quarter. Taking this information in isolation, this would appear as good news, however, it doesn't paint the full picture. This is because most of this growth came from the opening of new stores. Like-for-like sales from company-managed stores were only up 2.5%. Given that UK inflation was 2.5% in December 2024, this represents pretty much no real growth. As the bakery has seen a slowdown in growth from 2021, investors were clearly unhappy. Then, in early March, the firm released an update for the first nine weeks of 2025. These were even more disappointing. Same-store sales growth fell to just 1.7%. This is well below the inflation rates of 3% and 2.8% in January and February, respectively. The company pointed to subdued high street footfall and adverse weather conditions for its growth stagnation. After Greggs' share price fell from its trading update in March, the shares have been marching upward. There doesn't appear to be any news that's causing it, so I believe it's because investors think it's become a good buying opportunity. It's also worth pointing out that the company now has a pretty attractive dividend yield of 3.4%. This makes it a decent passive income opportunity for investors to consider. Furthermore, the bakery released another trading update (20 May) recently on the performance of the first 20 weeks of 2025. This was much better, with same-store sales up 2.9% on the back of overall sales growth of 7.4%. Therefore, this may be an indication that the firm may be experiencing stronger growth soon. All things considered, I think investors should consider avoiding Greggs' shares right now. That's because even though its same-store sales growth is back on the up, it's still below inflation, which was 3.5% in April. Same-store sales growth is important for the company because there's only so much growth it can achieve through opening new stores, especially as it already has a very large footprint in the UK of 2,638 shops. There's only so much more it can expand. Moreover, I'm worried about inflation, which is back on the rise. This could hurt the business's real growth. The firm itself expects cost inflation to be 6% on a like-for-like basis. Therefore, its margins may fall. The firm needs to pick up growth again, at least to the point where it's outpacing cost inflation, before I'd say its shares are worth considering again. The post £10,000 invested in Greggs shares 1 month ago is now worth… appeared first on The Motley Fool UK. More reading 5 Stocks For Trying To Build Wealth After 50 One Top Growth Stock from the Motley Fool Muhammad Cheema has no position in any of the shares mentioned. The Motley Fool UK has recommended Greggs Plc. Views expressed on the companies mentioned in this article are those of the writer and therefore may differ from the official recommendations we make in our subscription services such as Share Advisor, Hidden Winners and Pro. Here at The Motley Fool we believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. Motley Fool UK 2025 Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
18 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
See why this red-hot FTSE growth stock climbed another 15% in May
May was a good month for the FTSE 100 in general, and this high-powered growth stock in particular. Shares in aerospace and defence firm Babcock International Group (LSE: BAB) climbed 14.7% over the month, beaten by only a handful of stocks. This isn't a one off. The Babcock share price is up 70% in a year, and 200% over two years. Defence stocks have ridden a wave of renewed military spending across Europe, due to Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine and US President Donald Trump's unpredictable response. Is there more to come? Could be. Of the nine analysts giving one-year stock ratings, an impressive eight name it a Strong Buy. None say Sell. Babcock's latest full-year results, published on 23 April, helped set the tone for May. The board anticipates an 11% increase in organic revenues to £4.83bn on a constant-currency basis. Underlying operating profit jumped 17% to £363m, lifting margins from 7% to 7.5%. Babcock's biggest gains came in its nuclear and marine divisions, areas where the backlog of orders remains healthy. The firm converted roughly 80% of operating profit into cash and delivered £153m of free cash flow, despite an extra £40m pension contribution. Revenue growth, profit expansion, and cash generation too – what's not to like? The shares rallied as brokers lifted their outlooks. On 21 May, JPMorgan Cazenove nudged its price target up from 1,000p to 1,100p, and maintained an Overweight rating. It now expects Babcock to deliver average annual earnings per share growth of 10% for the next five years. And with high visibility too. The obvious concern is that Babcock doesn't come cheap. Its price-to-earnings ratio is now pushing 30, edging ahead of fellow defence firm BAE Systems on 27.5 times. Any earnings miss could hit it hard. Rolls-Royce, with its defence exposure (plus a lot more besides), trades on a P/E of almost 42 times. Another concern is that Babcock shares have flown too high, and must ease off from here. That could be the case even if geopolitical concerns continue. The eight analysts serving up one-year share price forecasts have produced a median target of just over 902p. If correct, that's a small drop of around 3.5% from today. PM Keir Starmer's EU trade deal could give Babcock and other UK manufacturers access to a proposed €150bn European defence fund, potentially driving fresh investment. I already hold both BAE and Rolls-Royce, both of which have done brilliantly for me. I'm wary of piling on yet more exposure at this juncture. Babcock has had a splendid run but its pricey valuations appears to factor in much of the good news (given the state of the world, I should probably say bad news). This stock has had a brilliant run, and given the geopolitical state we are in, I expect it to power on. But I also think the big gains have been made for now, so I'll sit tight with what I've got. The post See why this red-hot FTSE growth stock climbed another 15% in May appeared first on The Motley Fool UK. More reading 5 Stocks For Trying To Build Wealth After 50 One Top Growth Stock from the Motley Fool Harvey Jones has no position in any of the shares mentioned. The Motley Fool UK has no position in any of the shares mentioned. Views expressed on the companies mentioned in this article are those of the writer and therefore may differ from the official recommendations we make in our subscription services such as Share Advisor, Hidden Winners and Pro. Here at The Motley Fool we believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. Motley Fool UK 2025
Yahoo
18 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Greggs paid shareholders 50p this week. But is the FTSE 250 stock good for passive income?
When choosing a passive income stock, I'm looking for two things. Firstly, a generous dividend. This might sound obvious but not all shares are created equal. There's a wide variation in the level of payouts on offer. For example, in the FTSE 250, there are eight stocks that are yielding (based on amounts paid during the 12 months to 31 May) in excess of 10%. In contrast, 39 haven't made any payouts over the past year. The index average is 3.6%. The second requirement is a good track record of increasing – or at least maintaining – its return. In my opinion, a stock paying a reasonable but reliable dividend is better than one that offers an occasionally higher — but usually lower — yield. On Friday (30 May), Greggs (LSE:GRG) paid its final dividend in respect of its year ended 31 December 2024 (FY24). Qualifying shareholders received 50p a share. When added to the baker's interim payout of 19p, it means the stock's currently yielding 3.3%. This puts it in the top 40% of FTSE 250 divided payers. It's a solid – but unspectacular – performance. However, if this level of return could be relied upon then it could be attractive to income investors. Of course, dividends are never guaranteed but some stocks have a better history than others when it comes to shareholder returns. Understandably, Greggs suspended its dividend during the pandemic. Since then, it's increased it. In cash terms, the baker's FY24 final payout was 19% higher than in FY22. Its interim amount was 26.7% more. In addition, there have been two post-Covid special payments of 40p each (FY23 and FY21). However, although additional payments are always welcome, it means Greggs has a very 'lumpy' recent dividend history. That's because its capital allocation policy prioritises expansion and a strong balance sheet over shareholder returns. The group seeks to maintain 'circa 3% of revenue' as cash at the end of each financial year. Recently, although Greggs' dividend has been hard to predict, it has always surprised in the right direction. It's been steadily increasing its interim and final payouts with an occasional top-up when there's some spare cash. This seems like a sensible approach to me. However, looking further ahead, analysts are sounding a note of caution. They are forecasting a payout over the next three years of 68.32p (FY25), 70.78p (FY26), and 75.19 (FY27). If they are right, Greggs will be cutting its dividend in 2025. Personally, I have concerns that the group's rate of growth could start to slow soon. And like all companies, its dividend could come under pressure if this happens. In 1984, when the company floated, it had 261 stores. It now has 2,638 with a medium-term ambition of reaching 3,000 shops. Logically, each new store will be operating in a slightly less suitable location than the previous one. The group probably already has a presence in the best areas, reducing the marginal benefit from each new shop. Also, the move towards healthier eating might harm the sale of some of its more popular products. In my view, Greggs isn't a bad choice to consider for passive income. However, due to concerns over its growth prospects, I think there are better opportunities elsewhere. The post Greggs paid shareholders 50p this week. But is the FTSE 250 stock good for passive income? appeared first on The Motley Fool UK. More reading 5 Stocks For Trying To Build Wealth After 50 One Top Growth Stock from the Motley Fool James Beard has no position in any of the shares mentioned. The Motley Fool UK has recommended Greggs Plc. Views expressed on the companies mentioned in this article are those of the writer and therefore may differ from the official recommendations we make in our subscription services such as Share Advisor, Hidden Winners and Pro. Here at The Motley Fool we believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. Motley Fool UK 2025 Sign in to access your portfolio
Business Insider
19 hours ago
- Business
- Business Insider
Fraport AG Frankfurt Airport Services Worldwide (0O1R) Receives a Buy from Kepler Capital
In a report released on May 30, Carlos Caburrasi Ortega from Kepler Capital maintained a Buy rating on Fraport AG Frankfurt Airport Services Worldwide (0O1R – Research Report), with a price target of €66.00. Confident Investing Starts Here: Caburrasi Ortega covers the Industrials sector, focusing on stocks such as Fraport AG Frankfurt Airport Services Worldwide, Bouygues, and Flughafen Wien AG. According to TipRanks, Caburrasi Ortega has an average return of 1.7% and a 66.67% success rate on recommended stocks. In addition to Kepler Capital , Fraport AG Frankfurt Airport Services Worldwide also received a Buy from DZ BANK AG's Dirk Schlamp in a report issued on May 22. However, on May 19, Jefferies maintained a Sell rating on Fraport AG Frankfurt Airport Services Worldwide (LSE: 0O1R).
