- UK companies have delivered strong operational performance, dividend growth and record levels of buybacks
- Investors remain wary on the UK market despite huge cash generation
- There are tentative signs of sentiment improving as stability is restored
To paraphrase Mark Twain, reports of the demise of UK equity markets have been much exaggerated. Over 2023, UK companies have delivered strong operational performance, dividend growth and record levels of buybacks. Yet investor sentiment has remained bleak. We see a range of factors that might convince investors this is a market worth another look.
Contrary to the alarmism that surrounds the UK market, we believe that UK companies have a clear contribution to make in a diversified portfolio. Most striking is the healthy pipeline of dividends: the FTSE All-Share Index has a yield of almost 4%, compared to just 2% for the MSCI World index. We see an abundant choice of dividend paying…
