[ad_1] Image source: Getty Images With inflation constantly eroding our salaries and the cost of living continuing to rise, the need for a second income is more important than ever. One way of creating an additional revenue stream is to invest in dividend shares. And I’ve found a fabulous stock that’s currently offering an annual return of 6.25%. This would produce dividends of £1,250 for every £20,000 invested. Want to find out more? Bricks and mortar A popular way of earning a second income is to invest in property. But with the need for a large deposit this is becoming…
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[ad_1] The FTSE 100 is home to loads of amazing stocks paying generous levels of passive income. One that stands out to me is BP (LSE:BP.), with a potential return of 5.3%. This is over twice that of the index and more than can be earned from a high-interest savings account. It means someone with £500 to spare could earn £26.50 in dividends. Does this make it a ‘must have’ for income investors? Let’s see. Cash is king Although dividends are a distribution of profit, they are paid in cash. And as any accountant will tell you, earnings can be…
[ad_1] Image source: Getty Images Over the last 10 years, US stocks have been a phenomenal investment with the S&P 500 delivering an average total return of 15.6% a year. By comparison, UK shares in the FTSE 100 have only mustered a 9.4% average. And while that’s still ahead of its typical 8% yield, it’s nonetheless significantly behind its American peer index. But what does this all mean in terms of money? For those who have been drip feeding £350 into an S&P 500 index tracker every month since February 2016, their portfolios have now reached £82 shy of £100,000.…
[ad_1] Image source: Getty Images In 2025, UK shares paid out a total of £87.5bn in dividends. But in 2026, the prize is expected to be even bigger with £88.5bn being returned to shareholders. This just goes to show how much money is out there for investors to earn as a passive income. Of course, it takes money to make money. So just how much does an investor need to put into the stock market to earn the equivalent of £1,000 a month? Crunching the numbers The required size of a portfolio to generate £12,000 a year ultimately depends on…
[ad_1] Image source: Getty Images Opening a Stocks and Shares ISA is one of the smartest moves any new investor should consider in 2026. Apart from granting near-unrestricted access to the stock market, ISAs protect a portfolio from any capital gains or dividend taxes. In other words, even if a portfolio makes millions, HMRC’s fingers can’t touch any of it. Many people are under the illusion that building-wealth in the stock market is solely for the most wealthy in society. But that couldn’t be further from the truth. And even with just £150 a month, a 40-year-old investor can go…
[ad_1] Image source: Getty Images One of my best recent investment decisions was putting £4,000 in Lloyds (LSE: LLOY) shares in 2023, inside a SIPP. Although in one respect it was my worst. I should have invested a whole heap more. Like the rest of the FTSE 100 banks, Lloyds Banking Group has had a terrific run. The whole sector has benefitted from higher interest rates, which have allowed banks to widen net interest margins, the gap between what they pay savers and charge borrowers. Lloyds has been making plenty of money. Pre-tax profit rose 12% to £6.7bn in full-year…
[ad_1] Image source: Getty Images I’ve been hunting for a new high-yield dividend stock or real estate investment trust (REIT) for quite a while now. A few months, in fact. This is because I sold British American Tobacco last year after it made great returns and I kept worrying about this smokeless world management talks about. It sounds great for the health of future generations, but perhaps not so much for the firm’s longer-term profits. The FTSE 250 certainly has some eye-catching 10%+ dividend yields right now, particularly in the renewable energy sector. However, the whole net-zero debate has become…
[ad_1] Last Updated on February 14, 2026 at 9:04 amPPFAS AMC has begun onboarding clients to its Gift City retail funds: Parag Parikh IFSC S&P 500 FOF and Parag Parikh IFSC Nasdaq 100 FOF. We discuss what investors should consider before investing.From the investor’s perspective: As usual, investors should first consider their needs and avoid focusing on product features or succumbing to FOMO. That would only result in portfolio clutter. This product is only for those who truly understand what diversification means – not all components of a diversified portfolio will do well all the time. For example, US equities…
[ad_1] Image source: Getty Images Barclays‘ (LSE: BARC) shares are up this week after a Q4 trading update saw it beat earnings expectations. Statutory profit before tax (PBT) came in at £1.9bn, up from £1.7bn a year earlier and ahead of consensus expectations of £1.72bn. This brought its full year 2025 PBT to £9.1bn. The results delivered a mixed but broadly positive picture, even as revenue of £7.1bn fell short of consensus forecasts. The group finished 2025 having met or beaten all of its main financial targets, posting a full‑year return on tangible equity (RoTE) of 11.3%. It posted a…
[ad_1] Image source: Getty Images Investors have had great fun with FTSE 100 banks lately. I certainly have with my sector pick, Lloyds Banking Group. But I could just as easily have partied with Barclays (LSE: BARC), NatWest, HSBC Holdings, or even Standard Chartered. All have delivered champagne returns over the last few years. But are things are about to go flat? We shouldn’t read too much into a short-term movements, but I still sense the mood has shifted this week. My Lloyds shares are down around 3.5%. They’re still up 60% over 12 months and 150% over two years,…