magazine archive


magazine archive

Great Ideas

AG Barr: time to put some IRN in your portfolio

Thursday 07 May 2020

Investors seeking a high-quality, defensive recovery play should consider soft drinks group AG Barr ( BAG ) , the company behind iconic Scottish brand IRN-BRU that has demonstrated resilience in previous downturns. The shares have lacked fizz of late, yet we believe the sell-off is overdone...

Fundsmith recovers all its losses year-to-date

Thursday 07 May 2020

Fundsmith Equity (B41YBW7) 461p Gain to date: 12.2% Original entry point: Buy at 411p, 26 March 2020 Terry Smith-steered vehicle Fundsmith Equity (B41YBW7) continues to claw back the ground it lost at the height of the coronavirus-inspired market correction. Its credentials of investing in quality...

Shell shares are still worth buying despite dividend cut

Thursday 07 May 2020

Royal Dutch Shell ( RDSB ) £12.72 Loss to date: 5.5% Original entry point: Buy at £13.47, 12 March 2020 We were surprised to see Royal Dutch Shell ( RDSB ) cut its dividend by two thirds given its strong track record paying out during good and bad times. However the move could help the business in...

The growth fund beating the market and helping to improve the world

Thursday 07 May 2020

One of the best performing global funds over the past three years has deep roots in the world of ESG (environmental, social and governance). Since the Baillie Gifford Positive Change Fund (BYVGKV5) emerged in January 2017 it has posted a 110% total return, versus 18.6% for the MSCI World index. The...

Digital change expert Kainos remains a great pick

Thursday 30 Apr 2020

KAINOS ( KNOS ) 677p Loss to date: 5.7% Original entry point: Buy at 718p, 19 December 2019 Given a primarily UK Government and healthcare customer base, Kainos ( KNOS ) is in a considerably better position than other more enterprise-focused IT consultancy businesses. But while public sector...

Time to take profits on IT security group Avast

Thursday 30 Apr 2020

AVAST ( AVST ) 450.6p Gain to date: 50.8% Original entry point: Buy at 298.8p, 16 May 2019 To call the recent rally for IT security firm Avast ( AVST ) pronounced would be an understatement. The stock has jumped by two thirds in a month since hitting pandemic panic lows of 270.6p in March, sparking...

Computacenter resilient but dividends are off the menu

Thursday 30 Apr 2020

Computacenter ( CCC ) £14.90 Gain to date: 23.1% Original entry point: Buy at £12.10, 2 May 2019 IT re-selling outfit Computacenter ( CCC ) is navigating the coronavirus crisis well so far and we remain positive on the shares. A first quarter update (23 Apr) saw the company pull its dividend but...

Luceco can move beyond ‘darkest hour’

Thursday 30 Apr 2020

Luceco ( LUCE ) 94p Loss to date: 8.6% Original entry point: Buy at 116p, 19 December 2019 We may be out of pocket on our ‘buy’ call on electronic components firm Luceco ( LUCE ) but the shares have doubled from their bottom at the height of the coronavirus-inspired market sell-off. Sentiment was...

Buy ITV shares as advertising activity could soon pick up

Thursday 30 Apr 2020

Shares in free-to-air broadcaster ITV ( ITV ) are trading at levels last seen in the early part of the 2010s when the company was starting its turnaround under former CEO Adam Crozier. This price weakness creates a good opportunity to buy a unique business which will be closely tied to a recovery...

Travis Perkins can capitalise on homebuilding restart

Thursday 30 Apr 2020

Builders’ merchants such as Travis Perkins ( TPK ) could be among the first businesses to return to something approaching ‘normal’ levels of activity in the next few months. Having been shut to all but essential services since mid-March as construction work ground to a halt across the country,...

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