10+ min ago (762+ words) After the Chancellor's announcement this week, investors sent the FTSE 250 higher. But are they focusing on the right stocks? The FTSE 250 is more closely tied to the UK economy than the FTSE 100 is. So it's no surprise the smaller index responded more strongly to the Autumn Budget this week." Within the index, though, some companies naturally stand to benefit more than others. And a couple in particular have caught my attention over the last few days. It's hard to think of a company more exposed to UK consumer spending than Greggs (LSE:GRG). The stock has crashed in the last 12 months, but it bounced after the Budget. The hope is that increases to the national minimum wage might give consumers a bit more disposable income. And that should help revive some really poor like-for-like sales numbers." Weak consumer sentiment, though,…...

20+ min ago (754+ words) Stephen Wright has his eye on a defence company that isn't Rolls-Royce or BAE Systems for his Stocks and Shares ISA in December. My Stocks and Shares ISA has largely missed the recent run-up in defence stocks. But could there still be an opportunity for me in a name outside the FTSE 100 and the FTSE 250? While shares in other defence firms have surged, Cohort's (LSE:CHRT) trading below where it was in January. And I think the stock's well worth considering before the end of the year. Cohort is actually a collection of smaller businesses. But instead of machinery or weapons, its subsidiaries specialise in things like surveillance, threat detection, and cybersecurity. On the face of it, that should fit extremely well with the UK's government's focus. The 2025 Strategic Defence Review recommended these as key themes for future investment. Cohort…...

1+ hour, 4+ min ago (750+ words) The world-class company behind this growth stock is the only one providing the equipment needed to make all advanced AI chips today. Growth stocks with durable competitive advantages " or "deep moats" " can create enormous wealth over time. Just look at Microsoft, Nvidia, Netflix, Alphabet, and dozens of other stock market examples. Of course, the deepest moat is a company that has no competition in a particular market. So out of curiosity, I asked ChatGPT what the most powerful monopoly growth stock on Earth is. Let"s unpack the AI bot"s answer. ChatGPT was pretty emphatic: Dutch semiconductor equipment maker ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) is the most powerful monopoly growth stock on the planet. It said it"s not just market-leading, or a duopoly, but the only game in town in one crucial area. Specifically, ASML is the only company capable…...

1+ hour, 6+ min ago (745+ words) Our writer reckons those looking to generate a four-figure second income should consider putting high-yielding dividend stocks in their ISAs. My favourite way of earning a second income is to buy dividend shares. And there's lots of them to choose from. For example, at the moment (28 November), the five highest-yielding stocks on the FTSE 100 offer an average return of 7.5%. This means a "20,000 investment divided equally among them could generate a return of "1,500 over the next 12 months. But let's assume that instead of banking this cash, it's reinvested buying more of these shares. In this case, if the yield remained unchanged, income of "1,613 would be received in year two. Repeat this for another year and the return would rise to "1,733. You get the picture. The act of reinvesting dividends is known as compounding and has some high-profile supporters. For example, Warren…...

1+ hour, 16+ min ago (717+ words) Although aware of its limitations, our writer's used AI software to come up with a suggestion for his ISA and he already owns two of its suggestions. I recently asked ChatGPT: "Which bargain stock should I put in my ISA?" After congratulating me on asking a good question, it came up with a list of six very different UK companies. I already own two of them " BP and JD Sports Fashion. Of the other four, M&G (LSE:MNG) is the most familiar to me. Although it can trace its origins back to 1848, it only became a listed company in October 2019, having been de-merged from Prudential. Since then, it's increased its dividend every year since. And it's a pretty generous payout too. Based on amounts paid over the past 12 months, the stock's currently yielding 7.4%. This puts it in the top…...

1+ hour, 26+ min ago (781+ words) Buying dividend shares is a great way of boosting a SIPP. Our writer's found three to consider that offer a combined yield of 8.4% Because it's not possible to withdraw any funds until retirement age, I reckon a Self-Invested Personal Pension (SIPP) is the perfect vehicle for income stocks. It means there's no temptation to spend any dividends received. Instead, they can be reinvested buying more shares, a method known as compounding. Here are three high-yielding stocks that recently caught my eye. Land Securities Group (LSE:LAND) is a real estate investment trust. It must therefore return at least 90% of its annual tax-exempt property income to shareholders. Currently (28 November), it's yielding 6.7%. The group specialises in offices, shopping centres and retail parks. With increased working-from-home and internet shopping, this doesn't sound like a winning combination. But the trust achieves an average rental…...

1+ hour, 36+ min ago (770+ words) Our writer identifies his favourite stock for passive income but acknowledges there are lots of other candidates to choose from. In my opinion, the ideal passive income stock should deliver steadily increasing above-average dividend payments. Fortunately, those looking to boost their earnings have a wide range of stocks to choose from. My personal favourite is Legal & General (LSE:LGEN). Its dividend was last cut during the 2009 global financial crisis, maintained during the pandemic, and is now expected to rise by 2% a year from 2025-2027. If the directors keep to their pledge it will be (in cash terms) nearly six times higher in 2027 than in 2009. Based on amounts paid over the past year, the stock's currently (28 November) yielding an impressive 8.7%. And although dividends can't be guaranteed, I think its current level of payout can be sustained for another few years, at least....

1+ hour, 41+ min ago (662+ words) Discover how Royston Wild intends to fund his retirement " and hopefully become financially independent from the State Pension. Many of us (including myself) worry about the level of support the State Pension will offer in retirement. How large will it be, and at what age will I be able to claim it? In fact, will the State Pension even be around two to three decades from now? These aren't worries I'm prepared to sit back and accept while I have time to do something about it. I'm taking steps today to help me become totally financially independent in later life. Want to see what I'm doing? To my mind, saving instead of investing is a major mistake that millions of Britons fall into. Okay, money put in the bank provides a guaranteed return, and the value of my investment will…...

1+ hour, 42+ min ago (747+ words) Demand for Lloyds shares remains red hot. But Royston Wild thinks these high-dividend-yield stocks could be better for passive income. Lloyds Banking Group (LSE:LLOY) remains of the FTSE 100s most popular dividend stocks. It's a phenomenon I'm struggling to understand given the collapse in the bank's dividend yield this year. Lloyds' share price has rocketed 73% since 1 January. And so its forward dividend yield has dropped to 3.8%, way below the 10-year average of 6%. This figure is also just a shade above the 3.2% for the broader FTSE index. On the plus side, 2025's full-year dividend is tipped to rise an impressive 14% from last year's levels. Yet I'm doubtful the bank can keep supercharging cash payouts as the UK economy struggles, margins drop as interest rates fall, and competitive pressures increase. In my opinion, investors should think about avoiding Lloyds shares and buying…...

1+ hour, 46+ min ago (784+ words) This oil and gas giant's dividend yield is still one of the highest on the FTSE 100. Our writer considers where it might go next. Image source: BP plc BP's (LSE:BP.) shares are currently (as I write on 29 November) offering a dividend yield of 5.5%, the 10th-highest on the FTSE 100. This is based on amounts declared over the past 12 months of 32.64 cents (24.69p at current exchange rates). Although the group's payout was cut in early 2020, it's been steadily increasing over the past few years. Its third quarter dividend for 2025 is 58.5% higher than for the same period in 2020. And if the analysts are right, this will continue to rise. By 2027, they're expecting a full-year dividend that's 13.3% higher than the one forecast for 2025. But a stock's yield is based on its share price as well as its payout. This means it could fall even…...