Tesla (TSLA)

Shares in Tesla closed Tuesday's session 4.5% in the red, after the electric vehicle (EV) maker unveiled its cheaper versions of its Model Y and Model 3 cars.

The new Model Y Standard is rear-wheel drive and will start at $39,990 (£29,808), while the Model 3 Standard comes in at $36,990.

Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said Tesla's announcement "landed with a dull thud for those dreaming of a game-changing new model".

He said that the cheaper "standard" models were "achieved by stripping out premium features like glass roofs, rear screens, and some creature comforts – but this is cost-cutting, not reinvention".

Read more: Stocks rise as gold climbs above $4,000 amid political crises in France, Japan and US

"Perhaps the more important headline, and one that went under the radar, wasn’t the cars at all – it was about software," said Britzman, who holds shares in the company. "Tesla rolled out FSD v14, its biggest self-driving update in a year.

"For investors looking for fireworks, this wasn’t it. But for those watching the autonomy story, yesterday was another important step toward the future Tesla is betting on."

After falling in the previous session, Tesla shares were up nearly 1% in pre-market trading on Wednesday.

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Endeavour Mining (EDV.L)

On the London market, gold producer Endeavour Mining (EDV.L) was the biggest riser on the FTSE 100 (^FTSE) on Wednesday morning, with its shares up 2.6%.

The rise came as the gold price (GC=F) surged to fresh highs, soaring past the $4,000 per ounce mark. Investors have been flocking to the precious metal, as it is considered to act as a safe haven amid uncertainties such as the government shutdown in the US.

Neil Wilson, UK investor strategist at Saxo Markets, said: "Inflation, soaring debt, government spending ... time to party like it’s like the 1970s. That means you should hold more gold than usual, according to Bridgewater founder Ray Dalio. Gold is the 'most fundamental' harder currency, he argues."

Unite Group (UTG.L)

On the FTSE 250 (^FTMC), shares in Unite Group (UTG.L) slipped 5.6% on Wednesday, after a trading update from the student accommodation provider.

Unite said on Wednesday morning that 95.2% of its beds had been sold for the 2025/26 academic year, though this was down slightly from 97.5% in the previous year.

In addition, the company said that sales to date would deliver 4% rental growth for 2025/26, well down from 8.2% last year.

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Nevertheless, Unite reiterated full-year guidance of expecting to deliver adjusted earnings per share of 47.5p to 48.25p.

Oli Creasey, head of property research at Quilter Cheviot, said the company's recent updates have been "hinting at decelerating demand for student accommodation" ahead of this academic year.

"Today's results are for the period ending 30th September, when most university undergraduates have started lectures and moved into their chosen accommodation, and the company has run out of road to hit last year's occupancy levels," he said.

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-46.18

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Vertu Motors (VTU.L)

On the FTSE Alternative Investment Market (AIM) 50 index, car dealership group Vertu Motors (VTU.L) warned of a £5.5m hit to full-year pre-tax profit, in relation to disruption from the cyberattack on Jaguar Land Rover (JLR).

Vertu said it had seen "significant disruption" to operations in its 10 JLR dealerships, arising from the cyberattack on the manufacturer and said September's trading result was impacted by £2m. However, it said there had been progressive easing of the disruption in recent days.

Read more: Stocks that are trending today

In its interim results on Wednesday, Vertu reported revenue of £2.51bn ($3.36bn), which was up from £2.46bn for the first half of last year.

Adjusted pre-tax profit came in at £20m, down from £22.1m for the first six months of 2024.

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Marston's (MARS.L)

Shares in Marston's (MARS.L) jumped around 9% on Wednesday, following a strong full-year trading update from the pub chain.

Marston's said it expected underlying profit before tax for the year to be ahead of market expectations.

Read more: Shell expects 'significantly higher' gas trading in the third quarter

The company also said that like-for-like sales for the year grew by 1.6%, with growth outpacing the overall market.

Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at IG, said: "Marston's has served up a round of very solid news this morning, which comes as a contrast to Wetherspoon's more cautious update last week.

"The shares have rocketed higher as a result, bolstered by news that margins have improved, though they remain much closer to their post-COVID low than the highs of late 2019."

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