magazine archive
magazine archive
Great Ideas
Time to snap up WPP on price weakness
Thursday 31 Aug 2017Global advertising giant WPP ( WPP ) is trading at a 15% discount to its long-term average price-to-earnings (PE) ratio of 12.9 after a disappointing first six months of 2017. In our view a PE of 10.9 represents an excellent opportunity to buy a quality company which is one of the leading players...
Is Xafinity the ultimate defensive stock?
Thursday 31 Aug 2017Anyone concerned about low growth in the UK economy may wish to increase exposure to defensive stocks, namely companies which should keep making money even in tougher economic times. One of our top defensive picks is Xafinity ( XAF ) . The bulk of its earnings are generated by ongoing services to...
Shining a light on Midwich’s bright future
Thursday 24 Aug 2017The world of audio visual (AV) equipment has changed radically since Midwich ( MIDW:AIM ) started life in the 1970s. At that point, the products it dealt in were mainly overhead projectors. Today the technology has moved on but the company has kept pace. Midwich’s managing director Stephen Fenby...
Get in quick with this unsung small cap hero
Thursday 24 Aug 2017There are plenty of companies on the stock market unfamiliar to many investors, despite them having delivered solid capital gains and dividends for shareholders. It’s our job to put these companies on your radar and this week we’ve selected Barnsley-headquartered Billington ( BILN:AIM ) which we...
Greggs expansion still has legs
Thursday 17 Aug 2017Investors seeking a tasty growth and income stock for uncertain times should snack on bakery food-on-the-go retailer Greggs ( GRG ) . Shares believes the affordable sausage rolls-to-sandwiches seller can expand its estate significantly, while self-help measures should help sustain its run of strong...
Non-Standard Finance continues to grow in sub-prime
Thursday 17 Aug 2017The speciality lender sector on the market is full of risks. Failure on the part of borrowers to repay loans being among the most prominent. But Non-Standard Finance ( NSF ) is a firm growing fast, consolidating the sub-prime lender market at pace. Chief executive John van Kuffeler tells Shares the...
Threads maker Coats is a superb investment
Thursday 10 Aug 2017We’re confident the re-rating at industrial threads and consumer textile crafts firm Coats ( COA ) still has legs, so buy at 76.1p. Sorting out a major pension problem and joining the FTSE 250 index have helped to propel the share price by three-fold in the past 18 months. The focus is now on...
Why Cambian has exciting earnings potential
Thursday 10 Aug 2017Healthcare provider Cambian ( CMBN ) is anticipated to double earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) to £40m by 2021 according to broker Liberum. This step change in earnings is likely to be rewarded by the market and we believe it is worth taking advantage. The...
Alfa by name and performance
Thursday 03 Aug 2017We’re on a decent run of high-quality software businesses of reasonable scale joining the London market. Firms like FDM ( FDM ) , Kainos ( KNOS ) , Sophos ( SOPH ) and Softcat ( SCT ) spring to mind. Alfa Financial ( ALFA ) might just be the pick of the lot. Floating on 1 June at 325p, investors...
Bag Mulberry for global growth
Thursday 03 Aug 2017S hares believes this is an opportune moment to buy British luxury brand Mulberry ( MUL:AIM ) following a pullback to £10.23 per share. The fashion bags-to-footwear retailer’s turnaround is gaining traction, currency movements give some overseas tourists more purchasing power in the UK, while...