A Start for Housing
Morning, I'm Chloé Meley
In an encouraging sign for the UK's property market, lots of people knocked on real estate agents' doors last month.
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DHL to Pour $747 Million Into UK and Ireland Robotics Strategy
DHL wants to expand its robotic reach. The third-party logistics provider announced Wednesday that it would invest £550 million ($747.1 million) into its warehouse robotics capabilities in the United Kingdom and Ireland in the coming years to accelerate its e-commerce and health logistics businesses. More from Sourcing Journal Amazon Now Employs Almost As Many Robots As People Global Contract Logistics Growth Slows as Asia Leads and US Trade Policies Weigh LA Startup Grabs $10M to Build Out Fully Automated Freight Cross-Dock The decision coincides with the UK government releasing its first trade strategy since its exit from the European Union in early 2020; according to an announcement from the government late last month, the strategy was designed to foster economic growth for the UK and create meaningful trade agreements that will benefit residents and partners alike. DHL said that strategy only adds to the UK's position as 'a resilient and adaptable logistics hub [that] plays a key role in global commerce as trade patterns continue to shift' and noted that its continued shift toward warehouse automation will help enable growth for the UK's economy in the sectors it serves. To date, the company has deployed more than 2,000 robots in its UK-based warehouses. It uses more than 750 picking robots, made by partners Locus Robotics and 6 River Systems. The robots deployed with help from the latter partner are typically autonomous mobile robots (AMR) that are meant to assist human warehouse workers in fulfilling orders and locating items in tightly packed facilities. 6 River Systems' robot Chuck has several shelves and can move around on its own or with human intervention, just as a regular push cart might if it was enabled with automated steering. These picking robots have gone live at 18 sites throughout the UK, Ireland and the company's EMEA territory. What's more, DHL recently deployed its first Boston Dynamics Stretch Robot in the UK. Stretch assists human operators with unloading boxes weighing up to 50 pounds out of trucks and containers, a task which warehouse operators have long struggled to fully automate because of the crowded nature of transportation vessels hauling cargo and parcels, as well as the differing sizes of packages stowed in many trucks and containers. Stretch looks like a large-scale robotic arm that can glide around independently; instead of a hand, hook or grabber, it uses a suction panel to grasp and move goods autonomously and can grab boxes from the sides, not just from the top or bottom. This particular robotic model can operate unattended because it uses computer vision to detect any boxes or cargo that shift around or fall in transit or during unloading, then uses that data to correct the issue. According to DHL, Stretch robots can unload as many as 700 boxes hourly; the idea is that, if Stretch is consistently unloading boxes and parcels, human warehouse workers will be exposed to lower levels of injury risk while also amping up warehouse efficiency. Other Stretch users include Gap and H&M, according to Boston Dynamics' site. As part of DHL's newly announced investment, it plans to ramp up its partnerships with its robotic vendors. The idea is that, rather than simply purchasing or licensing pre-existing technology, the third-party logistics player will help develop, test and scale new technologies that could benefit the warehouse of the future. Tim Tetzlaff, global head of digital transformation, DHL Supply Chain, said the technology will help redefine e-commerce as consumers know it. 'At DHL, we're driving the next wave of automation, not as a one-size-fits-all approach but as a set of intelligent, adaptive technologies tailored to the specific needs of individual sectors,' Tetzlaff said in a statement. 'For e-commerce, for example, where the market is evolving and demand is growing, we're expanding our fulfillment capabilities to support that shift with automated solutions that significantly simplify high-volume operations.' Error while retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data
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Where homes are sitting on the market the longest and why
In recent years, the only certainty in the housing market is uncertainty. From the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic to unprecedented economic shifts, today's market has seen plenty of changes. Early in the pandemic, for instance, many buyers sought to take advantage of low mortgage rates, leading to a seller's market. Today, sellers still have a great deal of leverage in many places thanks to relatively low inventory. However, buyers have started to reclaim the advantage in a number of places. Cities across the American Sun Belt have started to see listings lingering on the market far longer than they did two or three years ago. Below, explores why that is and where it's happening the most. We can thank the COVID-19 pandemic for many of the realities we see shaping the real estate market today. Hot on the heels of the buying craze of 2021 and 2022 was a dramatic increase in listing prices. Sellers sought to take advantage of the sky-high demand, while buyers enjoyed a host of options to choose from. As of 2025, things look a bit different. While the demand for homes has dwindled, supply has not. What's more, many sellers haven't adjusted their expectations or home prices to match, with many asking for listing prices that reflect those they saw during the pandemic. As home prices grow–and mortgage rates inflate–many homes sit on the market for weeks and months at a time. Real estate listing data suggests that the median time homes spend on the market may be as high as 70 days, which is up from an estimated 30 days in 2022. While this trend may be true nationwide, it's affecting some cities and regions more than others. Most of the U.S. cities with long-lasting listings are in the Sun Belt, including Texas and Florida. That stands in contrast to the early days of COVID-19, when many younger families sought fairer climates to enjoy work-from-home arrangements. This analysis uses public real estate data from ListWithClever and recent estimates from St. Louis FED to examine where homes are taking the longest to sell as of 2025. Median home prices, supply, days-on-market, and local income data were considered to evaluate buyer leverage in select cities. The 305 area code is no longer the red-hot market it used to be a few years ago. The median time for Miami houses on the market in 2024 was 69 days, which is longer than all other major U.S. cities. The median home sales price in Miami is substantially above the national median, as many sellers are hoping to fetch high prices. Right behind Miami is Austin, Texas, a storied destination for arts and music lovers. After decades of robust population growth, home sales in Austin slowed considerably in 2024, and listings sat on the market for a median period of 66 days. The astonishing number of homes developers built during the population boom has provided ample supply for buyers looking to move to the Lone Star State, but many are still wary about pulling the trigger. One of the few northeastern cities to make 'longest-to-sell' lists, New York still boasts some of the most expensive real estate in the world. Accordingly, buyers are thinking very carefully before making such expensive purchases, especially with mortgage rates hovering near seven percent. Florida's largest city by population is also not seeing the turnover it experienced in 2021 and 2022. Home listings in Jacksonville last for a median period of 62 days, which is just behind Miami and Austin, Texas. The nation's seventh-largest city by population has surprisingly affordable homes. The median sales price of a San Antonio home in 2024 was just $308,000—far lower than the national median of $470,000. The median household income for a San Antonio family in 2023 was lower than that of all but two other cities (Pittsburgh and Birmingham, Alabama) on the list of the top 10 slowest-selling U.S. cities for homes. Although Pittsburgh has had a relatively soft landing after the decline of the city's once-ubiquitous steel industry, home sales declined from 2023 to 2024. The median sales price in Pittsburgh was the lowest among the top 10 slowest-selling U.S. cities, and median household income largely keeps pace. However, the rising inventory and stubbornly high mortgage rates have made Pittsburgh a buyer's market. Home sellers in Birmingham, the Pittsburgh of the South, can expect listings to stay on the market for a long time—around 57 days. Homes are relatively affordable, with the median sales price hovering around $286,000. The boundary for many potential buyers, however, is the city's low median household income, which is just short of $70,000. 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Greggs shares: here's the latest dividend and share price forecast
Holders of Greggs (LSE:GRG) shares (including myself) have endured a truly miserable time since last autumn. Since signs of sales weakness emerged in September, the FTSE 250 stock has plummeted, resulting in an near-40% fall on a 12-month basis. Greggs' share price slump reflects market fears that its former breakneck sales growth could now be history. I've not been tempted to sell my own shares, though. This is because I expect the retailer to recover strongly from current turbulence and deliver tasty long-term returns. But what are City analysts expecting on the share price and dividend front over the coming year? If broker forecasts prove accurate, the battered baker's shares will rebound more sharply than some may expect. The nine analysts with ratings on it think there will be gains approaching 30% from today's levels. Yet, it's worth bearing in mind that opinions among the analyst community are mixed. On the positive side, one broker thinks Greggs shares will rebound by around three-quarters from current levels and reclaim the £30 per share marker. But at the other end of the scale, one less-convinced forecaster believes a fall of nearly 25% is on the cards. Given Greggs' latest poor update, they perhaps can't be blamed. It said this month (2 July) that sales rose 6.9% in the first six months of 2025, less than half of what City analysts predicted. Like-for-like sales growth also remained highly subdued, at 2.6%. Broadly speaking, the near-term outlook in the City for the company's dividends isn't quite as promising. Analysts are expecting 2025's dividend to be pared back in anticipation of a 12% annual earnings decline. They predict a 67.3p dividend, down from 69p last year. Encouragingly, analysts tip Greggs to return to profit growth (+4%) in 2026, though. As a result, they also forecast an increased cash reward of 69.8p per share. The good news is that despite this expected volatility, recent share price weakness means these projections give investors market-beating dividend yields to enjoy. These are 3.9% and 4% for 2025 and 2026, respectively. Latest results show that even sellers of low-cost food and drink are suffering amid the cost-of-living crisis. With Britain's economy facing a period of low growth, it's possible that Greggs' profits may remain under pressure for some time. Therefore short-term investors may want to stay away. But for long-term share pickers, I think the company's share price plunge makes it worth serious consideration. With plans to supercharge store numbers, it has significant scope to grow sales and earnings (it's looking to grow its portfolio from 2,649 stores today to 3,500 eventually). This strategy also includes having a greater proportion of franchise stores (currently 20%), reducing the cost burden. More stores will also be located in high-footfall travel hubs like airports and train stations. As a shareholder myself, I'm also optimistic that steps to boost like-for-like sales will pay off, from improving its delivery proposition to extending opening hours to seize the lucrative evening trade. It's not without risk, but I'm confident Greggs will recover strongly from its current problems and deliver excellent returns. The post Greggs shares: here's the latest dividend and share price forecast appeared first on The Motley Fool UK. More reading 5 Stocks For Trying To Build Wealth After 50 One Top Growth Stock from the Motley Fool Royston Wild has positions in Greggs Plc. The Motley Fool UK has recommended Greggs Plc. Views expressed on the companies mentioned in this article are those of the writer and therefore may differ from the official recommendations we make in our subscription services such as Share Advisor, Hidden Winners and Pro. Here at The Motley Fool we believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. Motley Fool UK 2025 Sign in to access your portfolio
