Image source: Getty Images Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs) are incredible products for targeting long-term passive income. Both the Cash ISA and Stocks and Shares ISA protect your interest, capital gains and dividends from tax. On top of this, any withdrawals that an individual makes are safe from income tax. The trouble is, savers and investors who don’t use them to their full potential can scupper their hopes of retiring in comfort. So what would be the best way to aim for a £1,000 monthly second income in later life? And how large would their ISA need to be? Please note…
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Image source: Getty Images The FTSE 100 has had a strong year in 2025, with the index up 18% to date. But that performance pales in comparison to Fresnillo (LSE: FRES), which has surged an astonishing 321% over the same period. With gold prices holding above $4,000 and silver edging toward $60, can the Mexican precious metals miner continue to rise to the end of the year? New surge Just over a month ago, the stock plunged more than 20% in a matter of days after a massive after-hours sell-off in gold prices in New York. At the time, I…
Image source: Getty Images Legal & General (LSE:LGEN) shares have been very popular among UK retail investors in 2025, often finding themselves among the most bought stocks on platforms like AJ Bell. And with a dividend yield now stretching all the way to 9%, it’s easy to see why. But has this popularity actually translated into robust returns for shareholders? A quick glance at the share price doesn’t reveal much growth, given the insurance giant’s market-cap has only increased by 4.8%. But throw dividends into the mix and the gains are a far more robust 14.3%. That means a £5,000…
Image source: Getty Images With 2025 coming to a close, I’m on the prowl for the best shares to buy for 2026. And I’ve already spotted two US businesses that look strong contenders. So much so that I’ve already invested just shy of £10,000 over the last three months. A rising fintech First on the list is Toast (NYSE:TOST). The firm offers a complete restaurant operating system, solving the headaches of digital ordering, reservations, marketing, supply chain management, payroll, accounting, analytics, and even financing. This all-in-one solution is already deployed at over 156,000 locations with 22,000 added since the start…
Image source: Getty Images Over the long term, Barclays‘ (LSE:BARC) shares haven’t exactly been a phenomenal investment. In fact, over the last 20 years, even with dividends, the banking giant’s only generated a 34% return – an average of 1.5% a year. This perfectly demonstrates the challenge banks have operating in a near-zero-percent interest rate environment. However, with interest rates rising again, this story’s shifted dramatically in 2025. Since the start of the year, Barclays’ shares have jumped more than 50%. And for those reinvesting dividends, the gain’s an even more impressive 54%. To put this into perspective, a £5,000…
Image source: Getty Images Like many other FTSE 100 stocks, 2025’s been a truly terrific year for Lloyds (LSE:LLOY) shares after them treading water for some time. The leading UK banking stock has seen its market-cap expand by over 62% since January, driven by a combination of factors. This includes: Impressive net interest margins as the bank capitalises on higher interest rates to bolster lending profitability Legal clarity regarding the ongoing motor financing mis-selling scandal courtesy of the UK Supreme Court Improved free cash flow generation supporting a higher return on tangible equity (RoTE) of 14.6% (excluding motor financing charges),…
Image source: Getty Images The S&P 500 has been on quite an impressive growth streak in 2025. Despite tariff uncertainty spooking the market in April, exceptional artificial intelligence (AI) spending has lifted the US economy and helped drive its flagship stock market index up by double digits. In fact, even with all the recent volatility, index investors have nonetheless earned a robust 15.6% return since the start of the year, including dividends. As such, a £7,000 investment at the start of January is now worth roughly £8,092. And yet some stock pickers have generated even more explosive gains. In fact,…
Image source: Getty Images Analysts and investors spent most of November worrying about a stock market crash. This was meant to be the big one, as the AI bubble burst. Except it didn’t. So what have we learned? November ended on a surprisingly upbeat note. Bloomberg called it an “everything rally”, with shares, bonds, commodities and Bitcoin all lifting. The FTSE 100 and the S&P 500 both ended marginally higher, defying the gloom merchants once again. There’s always a bout of doom every autumn as the Cassandras insist the sky is about to fall. Yet from September to November, the FTSE 100 climbed 5.6%.…
Image source: Getty Images Palantir (NASDAQ:PLTR) stock fell 16% in the S&P 500 in November, marking its worst month for over two years. However, had an investor taken advantage of that dip back in August 2023, they would have made more than 10 times their money, even after November’s pullback. Nice. I’ve been looking for an opportunity to add Palantir to my Stocks and Shares ISA for quite a while now. But it has just marched higher and higher, rarely pausing for breath. Has November provided me with the perfect opportunity? What the firm does Palantir’s software pulls huge amounts…
Image source: Getty Images UK investors have been piling into Meta (NASDAQ: META) stock recently. And I get it – the Magnificent 7 stock is down 20% from its highs and is currently trading on a below-market-average price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of around 20. I’m just wondering if investors have a full understanding of the backdrop here though? Because there are a few important things to know about this tech company. Profit uncertainty The first thing to understand about Meta is that the company is spending tens of billions of dollars on AI infrastructure. This could really slow profit growth in…