Ahead of the market | Dividend record | Big upgrades
News covered here includes our assessment of very positive updates from two very different companies which brought substantial upgrades. Others have been facing more challenging sectors although several appear to be trading well ahead of peers. Read on here for our usual forthright assessment of small cap news.
James Halstead: tough market but dividend delight James Halstead (AIM:JHD), the manufacturer and international distributor of commercial flooring, reported full year results broadly in-line with forecasts. For its financial to the end of June 2026 revenue was marginally lower at £259.9m (2025: £262.0m), profit before tax fell 12.5% to £48.2m (margin 18.5%) and earnings per share down similarly to 8.5 pence. The UK represents 43.1% of turnover which hasn’t been an easy market to navigate due to the fall in new build activity and reductions in the regularity of repair and renewal activity. For the UK, education, healthcare and prison…