[ad_1] Image source: Getty Images The last time the Aviva (LSE: AV.) share price was above 600p was way back in 2007, just as the great financial crisis was unfolding. Today, the scenario is totally different, with clear positive momentum. As a long-term shareholder, I’ve seen bad times as well as good. But I believe the business looks well primed for future growth. Shareholder returns The first positive about the insurer is its shareholder-first policy. Since 2020, capital returns and dividend payments have totalled over £10bn. Each year it expects to grow the cash cost of the dividend by mid-single-digits.…
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[ad_1] Image source: BT Group plc Before full-year results on Thursday (22 May), the BT Group (LSE: BT.A) share price had gained 15% year to date. And a lot us thought there could be more to come before the year was out. But as I write on results morning, the shares are down around 3%. That’s despite BT hitting expectations for the year and expanding its full-fibre rollout targets. Maybe it’s because CEO Allison Kirkby told us that “revenue declined year on year driven mainly by lower international sales and handsets.” In these days of US tariff fears, anything hinting…
[ad_1] First Merchants Corporation (NASDAQ:FRME) has announced that it will be increasing its periodic dividend on the 20th of June to $0.36, which will be 2.9% higher than last year’s comparable payment amount of $0.35. The payment will take the dividend yield to 3.7%, which is in line with the average for the industry. Trump has pledged to “unleash” American oil and gas and these 15 US stocks have developments that are poised to benefit. While it is always good to see a solid dividend yield, we should also consider whether the payment is feasible. First Merchants has a long…
[ad_1] Mortgage interest rates moved sharply higher today. According to Zillow, the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate gained 13 basis points to 6.93%, and the 20-year fixed rate rose nearly a quarter of a point (22 basis points) to 6.59%. Thankfully, the shorter end of the yield curve fared much better as the 15-mortgage rate was unchanged at 6.08%. The 15-year home loan may be a homebuyer’s safe haven for some time. Bond yields spiked yesterday as worries mounted about the nation’s growing deficit. The 10-year Treasury yield broke over 4.5% — a key predictor of higher mortgage rates. Tumbling…
[ad_1] For global investors and institutional asset managers, Moody’s downgrade of US sovereign debt is more than a symbolic signal — it’s a market event with portfolio-level consequences. The move by Moody’s to cut the US rating to Aa1 reflects growing concern about long-term fiscal stability, and it forces investment professionals to reassess Treasury exposure, sovereign risk modeling, and forward-looking allocation strategies. Downgrade with Real Implications When Moody’s stripped the United States of its triple-A rating after markets closed last Friday (May 16), it cited a “rising tide of debt” and prolonged fiscal inaction. While the downgrade does not change…
[ad_1] Image source: Getty Images National Grid shares (LSE: NG) are firmly on my radar this week, with the utility giant set to go ex-dividend on 29 May. One of the biggest reasons investors buy the energy transmissions giant is for the dividend. It’s long been seen as one of the most reliable income payers on the FTSE 100, and for good reason. I always feel like a bit of a chump if I buy a stock shortly after it goes ex-dividend. It means waiting longer for the first payout. That said, it’s not quite the financial blow it feels like.…
[ad_1] Legal proceedings continue The case speaks to broader tensions around the climate claims of corporations and the voluntary carbon market’s integrity. The EDF has acknowledged concerns about credit quality are warranted but argues that stricter methodologies by industry groups are addressing these issues. Elizabeth believes that companies should be encouraged to engage in carbon reductions. “More broadly, we need to see this leading climate action scale across the private sector, not get penalised,” she says. On 19 May 2025, the plaintiffs updated their complaint to demand a jury trial. A hearing on Apple’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit is…
[ad_1] Image source: Getty Images The Rolls-Royce (LSE: RR) share price is easily the standout performer on the FTSE 100 over the past three years, rocketing 889% in that time. An investor who ploughed £10,000 into the stock at the start of that run would be sitting on £98,900 today. That’s the kind of return that can transform a portfolio and an entire retirement. It also shows the potential power of backing individual stocks rather than a broad fund, although returns of this magnitude are rare. Well that’s impressive enough, but what Rolls-Royce shares have achieved in the last three months…
[ad_1] Image source: M&S Group plc In May 2020, the Marks and Spencer (LSE: MKS) share price hit an all-time low at just 90p. Successive turnaround strategies had failed and online-only retailers continued to take market share. Fast forward five years, though, and the stock has become a multi-bagger, and one of the best performers in the FTSE 100. I must admit that the speed and endurance of the transformation caught me completely off-guard. So where next for the stock? Full year results Of course, it has hit the headlines for all the wrong reasons recently following a hack of…
[ad_1] Tech giant inks long-term offtake agreement with Exomad Green to remove more than a million tonnes of CO2 over a decade [ad_2] Source link