News & Insight Weekly Newsletters

17 June 2022 | William Buckhurst

That Was The Week That Was

MACRO

  • The Federal Reserve announced the largest interest rate increase since 1994, raising its benchmark policy rate by 0.75% to 1.5-1.75% and signalling further increases into 2023
  • The Bank of England hikes rates for the fifth time since December to 1.25%
  • The ECB held an emergency meeting in which it pledged to create a new “anti-fragmentation instrument” to prevent a widening in the spread of government bond yields between the likes of Italy and more stable nations such as Germany

COMPANY NEWS

  • Ashtead reported better earnings and revenue than expected while upping their revenue forecasts for next year, but the shares fell
  • WH Smith said its performance was so strong during the last quarter it now expects its full-year results to be at the upper end of expectations
  • Whitbread, the owner of the Premier Inn hotel chain, said hotel occupancy levels were strong during the first quarter in its core UK market, with comparable accommodation sales more than 21% ahead of the same period before the pandemic

SMALL CAP NEWS

With the market having “corrected” (even more so in the small cap space) there are a number of companies on discount valuations. This was proved on Friday afternoon with a bid for EMIS by a subsidiary of UnitedHealth, Optum UK for a premium of 49% from the closing price on Thursday valuing the company at £1.24bn

A WEEK IN TECH

Shares in Tesla finished lower on the week after it was announced that the company had hiked prices across its product range. Reports indicated that Tesla had increased prices across its line-up by as much as $6,000 in what is at least its third price increase this year as it raised the price of its Model 3 by $2,500 to $57,990 and its Model X by $6,000 to $120,990. The news comes after CEO Elon Musk’s email to staff indicated that the company had had a very tough quarter due to supply chain and production challenges in China and that staff needed to rally hard to recover

THIS WEEK IN HISTORY

1815: the start of a great family fortune as Nathan Rothschild trades on the back of advance news of Wellington’s victory at Waterloo

2000: the FBI and SEC conduct the largest securities fraud bust in history, indicting 120 people, including Mafia members, securities dealers and even the treasurer of New York City’s police detectives’ pension fund on charges that involved bribing brokers to sell shares of penny stocks to unsuspecting investors

IN OTHER NEWS

In the week Coty announced sales growth ahead of expectations, Revlon, a mainstay of drugstore beauty counters for 90 years, has filed for chapter 11

In the music world shares of the agency that manages the South Korean pop band BTS blew up as they hit “dynamite” after the band announced they would be pursuing solo projects

MARKET DATA

% returns

1 Week

1 Month

1 Year

5 Years

UK Equities (% return)

-4.06

-5.56

-3.00

-4.97

World Equities (% return)

-5.63

-6.22

-12.64

32.39

10 Year US Treasury Yield (%)

3.24

2.98

1.52

2.15

GBP / USD (fx rate)

1.22

1.23

1.39

1.28

 

As at 17th June 2022. Source: Financial Express

 

 

 

 

 

This publication has been produced by Vermeer Investment Management Limited (VIM) trading as Vermeer Partners. It is provided for information purposes only. VIM makes no express or implied warranties and expressly disclaims all warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose or use with respect to any data included in this publication. VIM will not treat unauthorised recipients of this publication as its clients. Prices shown are indicative and VIM is not offering to buy or sell or soliciting offers to buy or sell any financial instrument. Without limiting any of the foregoing and to the extent permitted by law, in no event shall VIM, nor any of its officers, directors, partners, or employees, have any liability for (a) any special, punitive, indirect, or consequential damages; or (b) any lost profits, lost revenue, loss of anticipated savings or loss of opportunity or other financial loss, even if notified of the possibility of such damages, arising from any use of this publication or its contents. Other than disclosures relating to VIM, the information contained in this publication has been obtained from sources that VIM believes to be reliable, but VIM does not represent or warrant that it is accurate or complete. VIM is not responsible for, and makes no warranties whatsoever as to, the content of any third-party website referred to herein or accessed via a hyperlink in this publication and such information is not incorporated by reference. The views in this publication are those of the author(s) and are subject to change. VIM has no obligation to update its opinions or the information in this publication. This publication does not constitute personal investment advice or take into account the individual financial circumstances or objectives of the client who receives it. Any securities discussed herein may not be suitable for all investors. VIM recommends that investors independently evaluate each issuer, security or instrument discussed herein and consult any independent advisors they believe necessary. The value of and income from any investment may fluctuate from day to day as a result of changes in relevant economic markets (including changes in market liquidity). The information herein is not intended to predict actual results, which may differ substantially from those reflected. Past performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. This material has been issued and approved for distribution in the UK by VIM. ©2022 Vermeer Investment Management Limited. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or redistributed in any manner without the prior written permission of VIM. VIM is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN: 710280) and is incorporated in England and Wales (company number: 09081916).

Back to News & Insights