Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square plans to take over Universal Music Group (UMG) in a $64 billion (£48.4 billion) cash and shares deal. Ackman said Universal Music’s share price has ‘languished’ due to a range of issues the merger would address. Universal Music GroupShare price: €19.4 (+13.3%)Market cap: €31.4bnPE: 19.3 Amsterdam-listed shares in the world’s biggest music company, whose artists includes Taylor Swift and Lady Gaga, surged on the news. As at 31 December 2025, Universal Music represented 13% of the net asset value (NAV) of Pershing Square Holdings (PSH). This is Pershing Square Capital Management’s flagship fund listed in London.…

In today’s Podcast, the Sharesify team discuss this week’s big bounce for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq and Steven explains why ‘loose cannon’ Donald Trump’s utterances could send indices lower again. James urges investors to stay calm and remain invested despite this turbulence. As the old stock market adage goes, ‘time in the market beats timing the market’. Turning to the week’s corporate news, James explains why the sale of Unilever’s (ULVR) food business to McCormick (MKC) is a Marmite deal in more ways than one. Ian talks about the latest share price leap at affordable computing firm Raspberry Pi (RPI) and…

Having taken over the management of Murray Income Trust (MUT) on 2 March, Artemis’ UK equity income team has speedily repositioned the portfolio. As of 31 March, new managers Adrian Frost, Andy Marsh and Nick Shenton had completed 98.7% of the transition. The managers turned over roughly 75% of the portfolio, implementing their changes despite the market volatility of the last month. Murray Income currently has 46 holdings with an expected range of 40 to 65 going forward. The new team has increased the trust’s gearing. This has risen from around 5.3% as of end-February to 7% as of end-March. In…

Nike (NKE) shares plunged in pre-market trading on Wall Street despite a Q3 earnings ‘beat’ from the sneakers-to-soccer balls brand. The catalyst was a downbeat Q4 revenue outlook provided by Nike. NikeShare price: $47.2 (-10.7%)Market cap: $78.2bnPE: 30.1x This heightened concerns that the conflict in Iran could halt the sportswear titan’s turnaround progress under CEO Elliott Hill. Q3 beat Oregon-based Nike delivered Q3 adjusted earnings per share of $0.35, above the $0.31 Wall Street was looking for. Revenue of $11.3 billion was flat year-on-year but higher than the $11.34 billion analysts expected. While performance in China improved, sales were still…

Shares in Topps Tiles (TPT) tumbled after the tiles seller posted a drop in H1 sales amid ‘challenging’ market conditions. A robust Q1 was followed by a slight slowdown in Q2 as homeowners and trade customers pulled in their horns. The Middle East conflict is likely to suppress consumer confidence and raise inflationary cost pressures further. Accordingly, Topps Tiles is undertaking a series of self-help measures. Not only will Topps slash head office costs, it will also close 23 underperforming stores over the next 12 months. Savings on the slate The wall and floor tile specialist’s H1 revenue softened 0.1% to…

Shares in AG Barr (BAG) bubbled up 7% to 659p after the beverage producer delivered tasty profit growth for FY26. The Irn-Bru-to-Rubicon maker said it entered FY27 with ‘good momentum’. And the company insisted it is on track to generate double digit percentage sales growth this year. Furthermore, CEO Euan Sutherland reiterated his ambition to double the size of the business, both organically and via a ‘more meaningful M&A strategy’. Strong core Revenue grew 4% to £437.3 million in the year to January 2026. This rise reflected growing momentum in AG Barr’s core soft drinks brands of IRN-BRU, Rubicon and…

In our latest Sharesify podcast special, James and Ian welcome Charlotte Cuthbertson, co-manager of MIGO Opportunities Trust (MIGO). MIGO is part of the Asset Value Investors (AVI) stable. The trust is unique in that it invests in discount opportunities in other closed-end funds where the managers believe there is a catalyst to unlock value. That gives them the flexibility to invest in any geography or asset class. Charlotte walks the team through how the managers unlock value by capitalising on discounts, making money for shareholders in return. She discusses the recent changes to MIGO’s investment approach and explains how the UK…

Healthcare fund RTW Biotech Opportunities (RTW) significantly outperformed its major biotech benchmarks in a ‘standout’ FY25. The trust delivered an impressive 35.7% net asset value (NAV) return. Additionally, its share price increased by 54.8%, narrowing the NAV discount from 22.8% at the start of 2025 to 12% by year-end. RTW Bio’s FY25 share price performance put it in the top 10 of all trusts tracked by the Association of Investment Companies (AIC). The recent FTSE 250 entrant is different to most biotech or healthcare funds because it is solely focused on finding ‘transformative’ technologies. These can range from early-stage academic programs needing…

Shares in Debenhams (DEBS:AIM) rallied after the online fashion group guided for FY26 adjusted EBITDA of £53 million. That is ‘comfortably ahead’ of previously-upgraded guidance. The revised estimate represents a 36% year-on-year earnings increase as the turnaround gathers pace. The upgrade largely reflected a 76% surge in H2 earnings. Cost-cutting and a pivot towards a ‘stock-lite, capital-lite’ marketplace continued to pay off for Debenhams. This pivot remains central to the recovery plan at the group behind boohoo, Karen Millen and PrettyLittleThing. Debenhams also raised its FY27 outlook. The retailer expects to deliver double-digit growth in adjusted EBITDA. Focused on growth…

To quote iconic movie character Ferris Bueller, ‘Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it’. This observation from the righteous dude is especially pertinent when it comes to the financial markets. As recently as Wednesday, key indices were up and the Sharesify team thought they could focus on company results. But US markets got smashed overnight again, leaving the S&P500 and Nasdaq trading well below their 200 day moving averages. In the latest Podcast, Ian and James ponder whether markets are now looking oversold. Ian explains why staying invested is…