Martin Gamble is Shares and Markets writer at AJ Bell. He was previously the Education Editor of Shares Magazine. He has been with the business since 2019.
Martin graduated from the University of Kent in 1984 with an accounting degree.
He has extensive financial markets experience gained through managing UK and European equity portfolios for institutions including Hermes Investment Management, Manulife Financial and Royal Bank of Canada.
While at Manulife Financial the funds Martin managed were consistently in the top quartile which was recognised with a ‘Stars of Excellence’ award.
Martin subsequently headed up the fund management business for Royal Bank of Canada in London.
Outside of work, Martin likes long distance hiking and playing Backgammon.
17 January 2026
How to screen for the very best companiesJust as when you’re buying a new jacket or set of kitchen knives, paying attention to quality when you are investing in a company’s shares is often a decision which can pay off in the long term. With this in mind, we are exploring how you can go about identifying some of the UK’s very highest quality companies.
While there is no generally accepted...
16 January 2026
Martin Gamble on US markets: Netflix, banks’ earningsThis week got off to an inauspicious start after the Justice Department served Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell with a subpoena, threatening a criminal indictment.
In a highly unusual turn of events Powell gave a public statement and video where he accused the administration of political pressure and putting the independence of the Fed under...
15 January 2026
Why UK bank shares have soared in recent yearsThe UK banking sector has delivered strong price returns to investors over the last five years, averaging 218% compared with a 50% gain for the blue-chip FTSE 100 index.
On a total return basis, including dividends, the sector has chalked up 279%, making it the second-best performing sector in the FTSE 350 index after the aerospace and defence...
10 January 2026
Copper surges past oil amid talks on £200 billion mining mergerThe price of copper and oil have tended to move in lockstep historically as both have been barometers of the health of the global economy. Both commodities, sometimes namechecked as ‘Dr. Copper’ and ‘Dr. Oil’ are pro-cyclical, which means they thrive at times of economic expansion.
That connection seems to have broken down of late with copper...
9 January 2026
TSMC scales new heights, Constellation Brands: US markets this weekUS markets made a positive start to 2026 with gains seen across the board and new all-time highs for the S&P 500 index and the small cap Russell 2000 index, which gained almost 4%.
Investors were bombarded with a raft of macroeconomic data which showed US services activity expanding in December at the fastest pace in more than a year, notching up...
23 December 2025
Find out what’s expected for US interest rates next yearThe path of US interest rates has big implications for investors across the globe given the implications this has for the world’s largest economy and financial market.
After a quarter percentage point cut was delivered on 10 December, attention turned to what is in store for 2026, a year which will see current Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell...
15 December 2025
Why the experts see a 9% return from US stocks next yearA MarketWatch survey reveals the median 2026 price target for the S&P 500 index from leading Wall Street analysts is 7,500. Based on its current level, this implies a return of around 9% for this key US stock market index next year.
Assuming the consensus is right in 12-months’ time, it would roughly match the long-term average annual return for...
15 December 2025
Portfolio MOT: how to keep your investments ticking overThe one constant everyone can rely on in life and investing is change. Keeping on top of shifts in your portfolio is crucial if you want to remain positioned to reach your long-term goals.
Before considering your investments, it is probably worth taking stock of your personal situation to consider any material changes. Things like getting married...
11 December 2025
Revealed: a great way to find stocks at a discountIn this article we’re on the hunt for shares which are trading at valuations which are significantly lower than they have historically traded on.
To do this we have screened for companies trading at a discount to their average 10-year forward PE or price to earnings ratio.
The forward PE ratio is a stock valuation measure that uses a company’s...
11 December 2025
The how and why of investing in the pharmaceutical sectorCould investing in pharmaceutical companies get your portfolio in better shape? The pharma sector is, at the very least, difficult to ignore given it represents around a fifth of the MSCI World index. It has also outperformed this global benchmark index over the last 30 years.
In the last three and five years though, pharma stocks have...
