Cheque in the parcel post for Royal Mail backers | Business

There is no set criteria for what constitutes a “dog stock”. It is probably fair to assume that it is a struggling company with a bleak future and an even bleaker share price chart.

Less than a year ago, Royal Mail would have been considered by some to be a dog. The shares had lost more than three quarters of their value in the previous two years and with letters on the way out, a flabby cost base and constant battles with trade unions, it had few fans in the City.

Then came the pandemic, which has given the company, and its share price, a new lease of life. The shares have almost quadrupled since last April as the boom in parcel deliveries during lockdown