If you'd invested in: Rathbone Brothers and Babcock International

If only...

Rathbone Brothers (LSE: RAT) is an independent provider of investment and wealth-management services for private investors and trustees. With £36.6bn of assets under management, the firm's shares rose amid its merger talks with industry rival Smith & Williamson. The new entity would have had assets under management of £56bn and around 3,000 staff, but the deal was called off last week.

Be glad you didn't

Babcock International (LSE: BAB) provides facilities management, training and support services to defence, rail transportation, marine and other public-sector organisations in Europe, Africa and North America. The firm has seen three years of unremitting share-price declines, and its stock now trades at just 10.5 times earnings. Earnings per share growth is also expected to slow to 3% in 2018, as Brexit is a big concern for its business.

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Alice grew up in Stockholm and studied at the University of the Arts London, where she gained a first-class BA in Journalism. She has written for several publications in Stockholm and London, and joined MoneyWeek in 2017.

Alice is now Consumer Editor at The Sun and covers everything from energy bills to Social Security.