UK 04:38 Monday, 21 September 2026
Breaking news and expert analysis on fast-moving AIM and LSE listed shares
Disclosure: I have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from ShareProphets). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.
Hello Share Scrimpers. I think all those dire predictions for the end of high street shopping have been overdone. The internet may be scooping up a lot of the Christmas custom. But we should never forget that tons of that profitable traffic is linked to the big retail stores anyway.
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Comments
stone the crows
Taking account of the not-so-special dividends the yield is a bit more than 2%.
wildrides
Agree on the scruffy over 35 group ( of which I am one) Its the ones still wearing 80’s shell suit type stuff that prefix every sentence with Aaaaaimmmmmmmm one needs to worry about . Makes one look over ones shoulder for a clandestine firing squad .
London is the exception ………… all those hippy sters with their beards , Ducati scramblers and over priced Belstaff waxy jackets . Those bloody watches the size of dusbins with a million little timing dials that you know have never ever been used in the lifetime of the watch get me going . If I see anyone I know wearing one I insist on a demonstration of the functions in front of a large group onlookers . They never know how to work them .
James
On the dividends, Next has paid out £1.70 this year in special dividends, which against the current share price amounts to 2.3% of additional returns on top of the standard dividend.
The company has a policy of defining an upper limit to the share price, above which, it will not buy back shares, but will instead return excess capital to shareholders via special dividends. The price limit, above which share buybacks will not take place is £69.62 currently and the share price has traded above the maximum price all year, hence the return of capital via special dividends.
The most recent special dividend was £0.60 and the latest dividend payment (to be paid on 4th Jan) is £0.53. From this, one challenge is that quite a large shareholding is required in order for dividends to be reinvested. (e.g. the special dividend would require ownership of 123 shares (value £9,022 at share price of £73.35) to allow the special dividend to be reinvested in a single additional share. For those who like reinvesting dividends, the high value of an individual share may be something to consider and factor in to a purchase decision.
DUCK AND DIVE
NXT must be doing some things right as my allegedly trendy son seems to buy something from their online store every week and I used to shop there myself 35 years ago (although not since). But I don’t think Jnr ever visits the bricks and mortar Next shop five miles away. And I have done all my clothes shopping online for well over a decade. In fact, I buy everything except food, and cars online. And anyone who goes Xmas shopping in person is mad imho.
I’m certain that the High Street is doomed. Why do you think that Barclays are offering free internet lessons to old codgers? It’s because the banks want to get off the High Street too (and when the inevitable cashless society finally comes, the banks will will be fantastic shares to buy).
The out-of-town brick supermarkets will last the longest because some people will always want to choose their own meat but don’t count on increasing footfall because online food shopping is growing too. While they still have to maintain their brick portfolio, I wouldn’t touch supermarket shares with a bargepole.