FTSE unchanged on rates mixed messaging, Games Workshop signs Amazon deal, and Hollywood Bowl strikes a confident note

“The FTSE 100 made an indifferent start to the final week of trading before Christmas as, having fired the starting gun on expectations for interest rate cuts at its latest meeting, the Federal Reserve attempted to walk that back at the end of last week,” says AJ Bell Investment Director Russ Mould.

“This leaves markets somewhat in limbo – although GDP and core inflation figures from the US later this week may help give stocks some direction.

“The Bank of England was notably more hawkish on rates than its US counterpart. The latest inflation figures may help determine to what extent investors take that seriously.

“There was a reminder that Rolls-Royce – one of the best performing stocks anywhere this year – has more strings to its bow than making engines for airplanes, amid newspaper reports it is in talks to provide small modular reactor technology to Ukraine as the country looks to build out its nuclear power capacity. The modest move in the share price suggests shareholders are not expecting any near-term impact on profit or cash flow, however.

“Bowling alley operator Hollywood Bowl reported a strong set of results, unveiled a £10 million share buyback and struck a confident note on the outlook. Bowling remains an affordable treat which gives people a release from the cares of everyday life and the performance of the nascent Canadian operation will only provide further encouragement for the company to pursue its expansion plans.”

Games Workshop

“One year and two days after announcing an agreement in principle to licence its Warhammer 40,000 intellectual property to Amazon for film and TV productions, Games Workshop has finally granted the rights to the US tech and retail giant.

“Don’t expect the content to appear on a screen any time soon though as Games Workshop says it will take another 12 months to agree creative guidelines.

“Games Workshop knows it is sitting on a gold mine with its fantasy world IP. It’s made a mint from selling miniature figures that hobbyists like to paint and deploy in tabletop battles, and there is an opportunity to make even more money creating dramas around its vast array of characters and universes, as well as selling associated merchandise.

“However, there is a fine line to tread between sweating the assets and royally mucking up. Games Workshop risks long-lasting reputational damage if Amazon makes a mockery of its IP on the screen. After all, a stinker of a show stays in people’s minds for a long time. For every Lord of the Rings blockbuster franchise there are catastrophic flops like the Dolph Lundgren-fronted Masters of the Universe film.

“Games Workshop is very protective of its assets, as we’ve seen in recent years where it has shown zero tolerance towards fan-made animation videos on YouTube. That suggests Amazon will not be given complete creative licence to do whatever it wants.”

These articles are for information purposes only and are not a personal recommendation or advice.