The stocks and shares the British press is tipping – and recommending you avoid – this week.
Three to buy
Vertu Motors
The Daily Telegraph
The Newcastle-based motor retailer has snapped up five more dealerships for £19m, adding Toyota to its roster of brands for the first time, following a recent fundraising. Brokers have upgraded their forecasts for the firm, which is winning an enviable reputation for growth, yet the shares are stuck at a five-year low. 56p
Anglo Pacific
Investors Chronicle
Falling commodity prices have caused “considerable pain” for Anglo Pacific, which holds royalties over coal deposits in Australia. But the worst of the mining downturn is over, Anglo Pacific’s royalty income is rising and its 8% dividend yield looks tasty. 74p
Benchmark
Shares
Shares in the fish-farming firm have halved since a profit warning last year, but investors should buy into the weakness. Benchmark relies on too few products, but its acquisition of Belgian nutrition company INVE has broadened its offering. 55p
Three to sell
Wolseley
The Daily Telegraph
Shares in pump maker Wolseley have fallen 10% after it reported “lacklustre” quarterly results. Most of its revenue comes from America, where demand has tanked with fracking activity and the oil price. Sales growth in Canada and Norway is also tepid at best. Wolseley is in a cyclical industry and at 15 times earnings the shares are too expensive. 3,689p
TalkTalk
Shares
Analysts at several brokerages, including Haitong Research, fear the struggling telecoms provider may be forced to cut its dividend by as much as 40%. The firm is suffering following an exodus of nearly 100,000 customers after a cyber-attack and competition in the sector is fierce. Costs labelled “exceptional” on the books look like they’re “anything but”. 248p
IG Group
The Times
Volatile equity markets should have led to a strong April for spread-betting firm IG Group, but instead, it was disappointingly quiet. Full-year figures ought to come in ahead of expectations, as IG’s customer base has risen by 10% a year. But on a pricey looking p/e ratio of 18 times earnings, all the good news looks to be in the price. 799p
And the rest
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| Buys | |
|---|---|
| Alliance Pharma | Acquisitions have boosted its pipeline and the shares are cheap (Investors Chronicle) 48p |
| Arrow Global | Arrow is profitably buying distressed debt from banks (Investors Chronicle) 266p |
| Auto Trader | The car dealer is bumping up dividends and share buybacks (Shares) 400p |
| Clipper Logistics | Profits are rising at the click and collect specialist (Daily Mail) 285p |
| Debenhams | Debenhams has poached senior staff from online giant Amazon (Investors Chronicle) 71p |
| Halfords | Halfords is sensibly investing in the booming cycling industry (Times) 407p |
| Ibstock | At seven times earnings, shares in the brick maker are too cheap (Shares) 199p |
| Motorpoint | The car dealer market is fragmented and Motorpoint has further to go (Daily Mail) 232p |
| Pets at Home | Sales are rising strongly at the vet and grooming specialist (Investors Chronicle) 262p |
| Sophos | Accounting issues at the cybersecurity firm are overblown (Shares) 211p |
| Taylor Wimpey | The housebuilder has a juicy yield and strong balance sheet (Investors Chronicle) 204p |
| Telford Homes | The London-focused property developer is alluring on a p/e of ten (Times) 371p |
| Urban&civic | The government’s Help to Buy scheme has boosted the developer (Inv. Chr.) 260p |
Directors’ dealings
Howden Joinery, the fitted kitchen specialist, has done well in the last five years. The shares have risen more than fourfold, on the back of rising UK house prices, and so far the firm has brushed off fears of Brexit, which has hit housebuilders and building suppliers. Management recently updated the market with figures pointing to a stable start to the year, saying that trading has been in line with expectations. But Chief Executive Matthew Ingle has taken money off the table, selling 1.4 million shares at £4.87, pocketing £6.8m.
A German view
Shares in sports equipment giant Adidas have jumped to a record high, notes Börse Online. And there is plenty of scope for more. The macroeconomic backdrop, notably German exports and industrial production figures, looks encouraging. The global picture has improved now that growth in China, where Adidas and Nike are slugging it out for market share, has stabilised.
The group is also benefiting from the structural shift towards healthier living, while major sporting events, such as the European football championships (where most teams are kitted out in Adidas) and the Olympic Games, give the sector an additional fillip. Adidas, which boasts a solid balance sheet, recently revised up its 2016 profit growth forecast to 25% – implying a bottom line figure of €900m.