[ad_1] Image source: Getty Images Anyone who thinks the UK doesn’t have any good growth stocks should check out Diploma (LSE:DPLM). The firm’s been one of the FTSE 100’s leading lights over the last 10 years. Revenues have grown almost 300% in the last decade and earnings per share are up 303%. So is the company starting to show signs of slowing down, or is there still an opportunity? What Diploma does Diploma’s a distributor of industrial components and equipment. Its strategy for growth involves buying other companies and helping them to grow their sales and profits. In general, investors…
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[ad_1] Image source: Getty Images A £250,000 ISA sounds like a major financial milestone. But when it comes to replacing a salary, the reality is far more sobering than it first appears. That’s because retirement outcomes aren’t determined by how a portfolio was built. They’re determined by how much income it can sustainably provide once withdrawals begin. Sustainable income Once contributions stop, the maths becomes remarkably simple. A portfolio either supports a given level of inflation-adjusted income, or it doesn’t – regardless of how long it took to get there. The chart below focuses only on this drawdown phase. It…
[ad_1] Image source: Getty Images Looking to build a life-changing second income? For me, the best way to chase a strong and sustained income — and one that requires considerably less effort than most popular side hustles — is to invest in the stock market. Last year, the FTSE 100 delivered an enormous 25% total return to investors. For the S&P 500 index of US shares, the figure was 18%. Those buying stocks at the start of 2025 could have supercharged their portfolios, then, boosting their chances of eventually enjoying a large passive income. Returns were larger than usual, sure.…
[ad_1] Image source: Getty Images Marks and Spencer (LSE:MKS) shares are certainly interesting UK retail investors — it’s one of the most researched stocks. The shares have surged from their lows during the cost-of-living crisis, but didn’t offer much in the way of returns last year. One reason for this was the cyberattack at Marks and Spencer that forced the suspension of online orders and disrupted in-store systems, hitting sales and increasing operating costs. Management warned of a material profit impact and ongoing remediation spending. The stock is now down 20% from its highs, even after a positive trading update.…
[ad_1] Image source: Getty Images The HSBC (LSE:HSBA) share price is actually trading above where most analysts believe it should be. That’s a real turnaround because UK banks, in recent years, traded at huge discounts to the share price targets. In fact, the stock’s now trading way above the commonly-used 50-day Simple Moving Average tool, suggesting recent gains have come quickly rather than steadily. So what’s changed? Retail investors often follow the money Investors often follow the money, and in HSBC’s case the direction’s become clearer. Materially higher interest rates for a sustained period have lifted net interest income, while…
[ad_1] Image source: Getty Images Many investors dream of building enough passive income to cover their monthly outgoings, and an ISA producing £1,618 a month would go a long way towards that goal. That equates to a very appealing £19,416 a year, all potentially tax free. But how large would an ISA actually need to be to generate that level of income sustainably? It comes down to the return an investor can achieve without eating into capital. At a cautious long-term 4% yield, the ISA would need to be worth around £485,000. At 5%, which could be achievable with a diversified mix of dividend-paying shares and income funds,…
[ad_1] Image source: Getty Images In March 2024, I penned an article on this website titled: “Now might be the last chance to buy Lloyds shares under 50p.” I thought I identified a few key reasons why the Lloyds (LSE: LLOY) share price looked undervalued. I even said the 50p share price might be seen as an “obvious low” in years to come. So what happened? Well, Lloyds shares now sit at 101p. They’ve shot up to a 17-year high. Investors have seen the value of the shires rise by more than double and collected a few handsome dividends along…
[ad_1] Image source: Getty Images Ever thought about putting money into some shares to try and build a second income through dividends? After all, Britain’s blue-chip FTSE 100 firms pay out well over £1bn per week on average in dividends. That goes to shareholders who do not have to do anything to earn it, other than owning those shares. Dividend shares can be lucrative Building a second income by setting up a portfolio of dividend shares sounds pretty straightforward. It can also be lucrative. But there are risks too. Dividends are never guaranteed to last. Share price falls can also…
[ad_1] Image source: Getty Images At the start of 2026, I thought Rolls-Royce shares were set for a more low-key year. After all, they had returned 222%, 90%, and 104% respectively in 2023, 2024, and 2025. This FTSE 100 stock was due a breather! But Rolls-Royce has flown out of the traps, with a 9.5% gain, making it the sixth-best performing Footsie share so far this year. However, the stock’s now trading at 39 times 2026’s forecast earnings. At this lofty valuation, everything will have to go right this year for it to keep powering on. And that’s obviously not…
[ad_1] Image source: Getty Images Saving up some money in an ISA then drawing dividends from it – potentially for decades – can be a straightforward way to try and build some passive income streams. How much someone might earn doing that depends on how much is in the ISA and what the average dividend yield is. To illustrate, let’s work backwards. Aiming for a target Say someone would like to target a monthly dividend income averaging £1,000. That’s £12k a year. At a 10% dividend yield, that would require an ISA worth £120k. However, 10% is unusually high for…