Diploma, William Hill and Bonmarche

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“The FTSE 100 opened on the back foot as a combination of mixed signals from overseas markets, political issues along with Brexit concerns hampered any major directional change,” says AJ Bell Investment Director Russ Mould.

“Specialised technical products and services group Diploma was one of the biggest FTSE250 risers following strong full year results. The group achieved double-digit growth in revenue and earnings and increased the total dividend by 15%. All the group’s sectors contributed to the performance and with a proven business model, broad geographic spread of businesses and robust balance sheet it remains poised for further growth. Diploma’s shares were up by more than 3.3%.

“Bookmaker William Hill’s shares opened lower despite an increase in revenues so far in the second half. In the 17 weeks to 24 October, online net revenue rose 6% and wagering revenue increased by 13%. Net revenue in Australia fell by 2%, but revenue in the US jumped by 28%. William Hill remains on track to deliver £40m of annualised savings by the end of this year. The group’s shares were down by over 0.7% in early trading.

“Women’s fashion retailer Bonmarche's shares jumped after it grew market share in a difficult trading environment. First half revenues were up 5% following a surge in online sales. The clothing market is likely to remain challenging with shoppers facing a squeeze on their spending power but Bonmarche has made progress in each of its five key strategic areas: product, online, loyalty, stores and systems/processes. Bonmarche's shares were up by more than 13.4%.”

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