UK 10:40 Saturday, 7 November 2026
Breaking news and expert analysis on fast-moving AIM and LSE listed shares
There is lots going on this Friday during the first week of the quarterly global earnings season. I had to smile at the news of Aston Martin Lagonda (AML) announcing a ‘mere’ £653 million proposed equity capital raise with “the proceeds used to meaningfully de-leverage the balance sheet”, aided by “leading global investment fund PIF”. And just in case you don’t know the “Public Investment Fund (PIF) is the sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia”... Once again, more money from the rich for a business which only sells to the rich (and which has still gone bust loads of times).
As I observed back in January I am “not a global fashionista nor a chav...but still a Burberry (BRBY) shares fan”. With events since, unsurprisingly the share is down but I can live with that as - at various points over the last few years - I have bought the stock at an average price below the current sub 16 quid share price level. But what do today’s full year numbers to the start of April tell me about both recent and upcoming trading realities?
I see Emma Walmsley - the current (but surely not for much longer) CEO of GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) - is very excited this morning, after the company announced hiring a new Chief Scientific Officer designate who will take the full job in August. I do agree with Emma that the appointment is positive and important, but I do wonder whether there will be also be a newly announced Glaxo CEO come August, irrespective of the company’s big intellectual and R&D push over the next few years. Even if Glaxo shares are back below 17 quid, you know my continuing positive thoughts as mentioned a few days ago HERE. Meanwhile, let’s talk about Burberry (BRBY).
I have no regrets that I quit as an institutional fund manager six months or so before my 40th birthday. That was over eight years ago now and fortunately in the investment world there is always plenty of new stuff to learn, especially when you can choose to only work with people you like and/or respect. Anyhow it was kind of interesting that the global fund I managed at the time I quit as a 39 year old, had thirty-nine holdings. But as I get older I own fewer positions, though one I still like is Burberry (BRBY).
It's time to have a look again at Burberry (BRBY), shares in which I have loved for a number of years (even if I have never bought one of its products personally). But the shares have been a bit volatile so far this year, as I noted the other week with the surprise decision by the company’s CEO to leave. So whilst further insights on who may be the next CEO is more of an issue for later in the year, why are the company’s shares down today given its ‘excellent progress’ comment about year-to-date sales?
To be honest I did not think that today would be that exciting on the global stock markets. Certainly that has been the case for the vast majority of shares that I own or follow...with the exception of British luxury fashion house Burberry (BRBY), whose shares are down over 7% as I write. So why the big fall?
Another day of volatility ‘excitement’ in markets today...but you can read more of some of my thoughts on this yesterday HERE, so let’s talk about something else and - for me - that has to be luxury goods company Burberry (BRBY) which published its full year to the end of March numbers today.
Earlier this month, here, I excitedly wrote that prospects for shares in Burberry (BRBY) were strong as ‘comparable store retail sales in Q4 FY2021 are expected to be in the range of +28% to +32% higher than the same period last year’. And the reason (again) for this progress despite a world of shutdowns has been a substantial rise in demand for its luxury goods in China. That is why Burberry shares were pushing above a £21 share price at the time of my thoughts above. So why did the shares dump below a £19 share price on Thursday and Friday this week despite a broadly workable stock market in the last few weeks? Well that would be a few new thoughts from both the UK (and others) and naturally China.
About a month ago on Burberry Group (BRBY) I confirmed that ‘I still am - in short - a Burberry (China) chav lover!’. My basic thought was that its Chinese sales were rising fast - along with some still rising shares in the UK and Europe - but why has the Burberry share price risen over 8% today?
For me, a combination of earnings updates this week from the mining and banking sectors will give larger cap UK share watchers a bit of a focus. Markets so far in February have broadly copied the positive take seen last November and December, although at least it is now based on actual Covid-19 vaccine tests and being the other side of Brexit deal details. Yes - as discussed via a bunch of names such as DS Smith (SMDS), Whitbread (WTB) and Ibstock (IBST) in recent weeks - the scope for interest in cyclically recovering names remains opportunistic.
Back in early November here, I got all excited about the global luxury brand company Burberry (BRBY) on the basis that Asia - especially China - was getting closer to being half the overall sales of the business. Sales elsewhere in the world were under a bit more pressure but the historic chavtastic name felt cheap to me at about sixteen quid a share. After today’s third quarter update, the shares are up to above eighteen quid a share which is solid news for shareholders.
