If only...
Softcat (LSE: SCT) provides IT infrastructure services to companies and the public sector. Its shares spiked in October as it announced that sales were up by 24% to £832.5m in its first full year as a listed company.
The results were boosted by growth in public-sector IT contracts, which now represent 31% of its total income. It also reported strong growth in its security business, as firms strengthen their cyber defences and prepare for new data protection regulations.
Be glad you didn't
Drax Group (LSE: DRX) generates and supplies electricity. In July, Drax, which owns the UK's largest power station, reported a pre-tax loss of £83m in the first half (compared with a profit of £184m during the same period a year ago) as the value of coal assets fell. Drax is trying to diversify its business, following news that the UK's last coal-power stations must close by 2025 to meet climate-change commitments.
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State pension to rise 4.8% in April under triple lockThe full new state pension is set to reach £12,548 a year, reflecting the 4.8% wage growth measured under the triple lock. The bumper boost will raise questions about fairness and sustainability, while more pensioners could be hit with a tax bill
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Inheritance tax pension reforms will delay payments to grieving families and the taxmanThe government is pressing ahead with plans to charge inheritance tax on pensions but there are warnings that it will be harder for executors to administer an estate and pay HMRC
