The 5 most actively traded stocks last month

A look at the most actively traded stocks on the Fidelity website in April, throws up some very familiar names. It’s no surprise two of the spots were taken by banks, given high interest rates have caused better-than-expected results. 

Most actively traded shares April 2023

1. Legal & General
2. Lloyds Banking Group
3. BP
4. Barclays
5. Rolls-Royce

Source: Fidelity Brokerage, 30 April 2023

Legal & General

Hot on the heels of the recent bond market turmoil, which threw the spotlight on Legal & General (L&G), seeing as it is one of the biggest players in the market for liability-driven investment strategies, L&G has hit the headlines again, after warning investors to buckle-up for a bumpy ride.

This time the reason is climate change; or more specifically that a delayed shift to a low-carbon economy, could leave global equities more than a third lower than if there were to be a rapid shift. It says that a quarter of companies that currently issue investment-grade bonds could face downgrades if a net zero world is not achieved by 2050.

What might be more pressing for investors than that though is the news - dubbed “the end of an era” by some - that chief executive Sir Nigel Wilson is to retire after more than a decade in the job. Having joined in 2009 as chief financial officer, before becoming chief executive in 2012, Sir Nigel drove the group’s push to invest in infrastructure and other long-term assets across the UK. 

More on Legal & General 

Lloyds Banking Group

Staying in the financial services sector, Lloyds Banking Group takes the second spot in the most actively traded stocks by Fidelity customers in April. The numerous Bank of England base rate rises have been good news for the bank, helping it to better-than-expected first quarter results.

Lloyds posted a near 50% jump in first-quarter profits to £2.3bn, up from £1.5bn a year earlier. The group’s revenues rose 15% to £4.7bn, in line with analysts’ expectations. Its net interest margin (the difference between the interest it receives on its loans and the rate it pays on deposits) will average more than 3.05% across the year, the bank said. But it left investors disappointed by keeping its full-year financial forecasts unchanged.

There was a note of caution accompanying the latest set of results. The banking group revealed that competition in the mortgage market is intensifying and pressures on some of its customers are rising. The bank has set aside £243mn to cover bad loans, up from £177mn in the same period last year, although less than the £356mn analysts had forecast. 

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Barclays

That was something that played to Barclays’ strengths too. Here, profits jumped by more than a quarter in the first three months of the year with Barclays UK, its ringfenced consumer lender, leading the rise with profits for this division coming in 30% higher at £515m. This was “primarily driven by net interest income growth from higher rates”, Barclays said, as the Bank of England lifted its base rate to a 15-year high of 4.25 per cent last month.

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BP

Disappointment too came for shareholders in BP this week, when the oil giant revealed that it would be paring back share repurchases this year. 

The shares fell on news that, despite posting expectation-beating first quarter profits, planned share buybacks would not match the record levels seen in 2022. BP left its quarterly dividend unchanged after raising it 10% in February but said there would be just $1.75bn in buybacks in the next three months, down from $2.75bn of buybacks announced in the first quarter. 

Underlying profits at BP came in at $5bn for the first three months of the year. Less than the $6.2bn recorded in the first three months of 2022, after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine sent oil and gas prices soaring but beating analysts’ forecasts of $4.3bn.

More on BP

Rolls-Royce

Finally, Rolls-Royce chief executive Tufan Erginbilgic has wasted no time since announcing a strategic review of the company’s activities in February. He’s now replaced the group’s finance director and installed new leaders at its two main businesses. And you can bet there will be more seismic changes to come from the straight-talking boss who, weeks into the job, unflinchingly described the under-performing British engineering group as a “burning platform”. Watch this space.

More on Rolls-Royce

Important information - investors should note that the views expressed may no longer be current and may have already been acted upon. Overseas investments will be affected by movements in currency exchange rates. Reference to specific securities should not be construed as a recommendation to buy or sell these securities and is included for the purposes of illustration only. When you are thinking about investing in shares, it’s generally a good idea to consider holding them alongside other investments in a diversified portfolio of assets. This information is not a personal recommendation for any particular investment. If you are unsure about the suitability of an investment you should speak to one of Fidelity’s advisers or an authorised financial adviser of your choice.