interactive investor, the UK’s second largest investment platform for private investors, outlines the most bought investments on its platform in July 2023.
Richard Hunter, Head of Markets at interactive investor, explains the renewed sense of optimism in July for markets. He says: “July’s earnings season has provided more upside surprises than expected so far, albeit against a fairly low level of expectations. It is estimated that with around half of the current season now complete, around 80% of companies have beaten analyst expectations, even to the level of the mega-cap technology shares which have been major contributors to excess Nasdaq gains this year. A further test to this optimism will come later this week as both Apple and Amazon provide their latest trading updates.”
Commenting on the most bought equities in July, Victoria Scholar, Head of Investment, interactive investor, says: “In typical style, FTSE 100 names are dominating this month’s list of most bought stocks on the ii platform. UK blue-chips are a mainstay of many ii customer portfolios, partly thanks to their attractive dividends on offer. Vodafone, Legal & General and Aviva, which are all on this month’s list once again, boast annual yields of over 8%, appealing to investors on the hunt for income.
“Rolls Royce has returned to ii’s most popular stocks list in July. It has enjoyed a blockbuster run so far in 2023, topped off late last month by a 45% full-year operating profit upgrade, providing another boost for the engine maker and drawing more investors towards the stock.
“Easyjet joins the list of most bought stocks this month. Shares have been rebounding this year, but remain sharply below their pre-covid highs after the pandemic heavily punished the sector. Despite this, the clouds are parting for the low-cost carrier which is predicting a record summer of profits thanks to increased ticket prices as well as the rebound in international travel over the seasonally crucial holiday season.
“Crossing the Atlantic, Tesla is another mainstay of ii customer portfolios, maintaining its positioning on the list of most popular stocks this month. It has been one of the best performing stocks in the United States this year, rebounding with a vengeance after the ‘tech wreck’ of 2022. Its quarterly earnings report in July disappointed investors as profit margins suffered on the back of its price cutting strategy. Nonetheless this may have prompted investors to ‘buy the dip’ after shares pulled back following the release.
“Also in mega-cap tech, Microsoft joined the list of most bought stocks this month. It has attracted investors as a proxy play to this year’s hype around artificial intelligence (AI) with earnings in July outlining aggressive AI spending plans, which spooked investors and punished its share price. Perhaps the attention around its results attracted more customers to buy shares after the mini pullback. Microsoft has been another standout stock market winner, so far, this year.
“RC365, a lesser-known stock, has appeared in our most bought list of equities in July. The stock has enjoyed a meteoric surge since the start of the year up over 500%, with its breathtaking gains prompting more ii investors to try to get in on the action. The payment gateway services company more than doubled revenues in the latest financial year while investors have been getting excited about its AI potential.”
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