CITY WHISPERS: Are Hipgnosis investors set for an Easter rinsing?

Things are getting ever more discordant for investors in Hipgnosis.

The music fund, which owns the rights to songs by artists such as Shakira and Justin Bieber, saw its shares plunge to an all-time low last week after it slashed the value of its portfolio by a quarter. 

It said its vast catalogue could be worth as little as £1.5 billion, which is 26 per cent less than what it was valued at in September.

This pushed shares to a record low of 53p, a far cry from their peak of £1.29 in late 2021. 

In an even less comforting sign for investors, Hipgnosis, the brainchild of music mogul Merck Mercuriadis, has said it will give another update to the market on March 29. 

Elephant in the room: Hipgnosis has said it will give another update to the market on March 29

This is, Whispers notes, Good Friday and a Bank Holiday.

It will delay the possibility of more share price misery as it leaves a four-day break before trading resumes on the Tuesday.

Perhaps Mercuriadis just wants to eat his Easter eggs in peace.

Richard Griffiths tripled his holding in IQE

There was a boost for IQE last week as ‘Welsh wizard’ Richard Griffiths tripled his holding in the semiconductor firm to 7.6 per cent. 

The former sheep farmer is known for his success in backing firms such as Nanoco, GVC and Oxford Nanopore Technologies. 

Maybe his latest move will work some magic on IQE’s share price, which has yet to recover from a plunge a year ago. 

M&S scoops fashion retailer award

Britain’s top shopkeepers gathered at the swanky Grosvenor House Hotel in Mayfair last week for the annual awards hosted by trade rag Retail Week.

Among those on the podium were Sainsbury’s boss Simon Roberts, who clinched retail leader of the year. Tesco won the gong for best big retailer.

Perhaps the biggest winner of the night was M&S, which secured the trophy for fashion retailer of the year.

None will be celebrating harder than the firm’s head of clothing Richard Price. He has spent the past four years, along with director of womenswear Maddy Evans, making Marks & Spencer stylish again.

What a makeover!

Ship broker Clarksons buoyant 

Clarksons posted a record set of results.

The FTSE 250 firm has been in demand as Houthi rebel attacks in the Red Sea have left transport companies scrambling to secure passage on alternative routes. But buried in its results was another reason.

Clarksons flagged that the lack of ships had been exacerbated by a push to green fuels as the sector battles to bring down emissions. 

This is making owners hesitant to order more vessels due to worries that they may not pick the right fuel technology. Not exactly plain sailing, eh?

                                                              Contributors: Francesca Washtell and Leah Montebello 

This post first appeared on Dailymail.co.uk