Newspaper and magazine share tips

By This Is Money
Updated: 05:36 EDT, 10 July 2009

Each week we round up share tips from national newspapers and investment magazines. For the Mail on Sunday's stock picks, read the Midas column

Fall: Tullow Oil has suffered its sixth successive daily drop in oil prices

Thursday

The Times

Tullow Oil has suffered its sixth successive daily drop in oil prices as it issued its half-year trading statement earlier this week. Shares have retreated 3% and a delay in the much anticipated drilling in Uganda's Lake Albert rift basin has meant that results have been postponed for at least a month. Lower Oil prices combined with reduced production has caused a fall in revenues by 23% on 2008. However, taking into account the busy drilling programme in West Africa which looks set to produce a steady rise in production revenues, the shares are a hold.

The FTSE 250 confirmed on Tuesday that cash from Carillion's operations in Dubai is flowing back to the UK despite the fall in revenues from the Middle East in recent months. Of the £600m of revenues it expects to make in the Middle East this year, £250m has already been made back. Furthermore the company's debt is falling faster than expected and a double digit profit growth in 2009 has been set out. hold.

The Independent

A 'risky bet' but 'still worth a punt' says the Independent, who acclaims Tullow Oil to be the most impressive in the oil sector. Whilst highlighting the fall in revenue and the climb in Crude prices, affecting the 20% climb in share prices in the past six months, the general view is tobuy - especially as oil prices are already accounted for in the value of its shares.

Carillion has benefited from having its fingers in many pies and has already identified 99% of targeted revenues which makes its stock a safe bet for investors. Despite expected future cuts in government spending to compensate for the cost of the banking bailout, Carillion shares still has room to improve making it a buy.

The Daily Telegraph

A buy opportunity has been created for those wanting to invest in the development of one of the world's largest emerging economies as the JP Morgan Indian Investment Trust benefits from the largest single day loss for six months in the Indian stock market. The trust's net asset value per share on Monday stood at 316.55p on a fully diluted basis and shares have risen by 37% since their recommendation. They are a long-term core emerging market holding. Buy.

Cape is an energy and mining group which has demonstrated impressive cash generation in recent months, evident in its unexpected fall in debt from £165m at the end of last year to £120m. The company is said to be on track to meet full-year expectations, with a strong performance in the Middle East and positive currency movements. Cape is also winning numerous contracts, recently confirming deals in Qatar. With revenues improving as an added bonus the shares remain a buy.

Shares Magazine

Bglobal is set to rally back upwards after hitting a low of 8.62p last month. The metering infrastructure company is back on track with new source of asset financing which will enable it to install around 50,000 smart meters for its customers. Bglobal will benefit from new UK Government plans for smart meters to be in every home and tighter carbon emissions legislation. With overseas expansion plans the company looks set of a period of growth. Shares magazine advises investors to buy the shares ahead of full year results which are due in the next week or so.

• Read the latest share tips and advice on PartyGaming & Computacenter

Wednesday

The Times

Michael Page International, the recruitment company, yesterday filed one of its worst set of figures since floating eight years ago with net fee income from permanent posts - two-thirds of gross profits - was down 52%. So Page, which made £140m in 2008, will be fortunate to make a tenth of that this year. But Page remains profitable - many rivals aren't - and is geared to recovery. But fewer jobs inevitably means more competition to fill them and downward pressure on fee rates - expect 10% falls. Last October's 165p low is likely to have been the low, but at 50 times the best guess of next year's profits, and the yield just 3.5%, there is no compelling short-term reason to buy. Pass.

Building materials supplier CRH may be Ireland's biggest company but it is also one of the stock market's most seasonal businesses with work halting annually in some of its most important markets - Poland, Finland and the upper states of the US. Even so, yesterday's first-half profits, which cover that period, made grim reading with operating profits down 65% against an expectation of 40%. But CRH claims to see the first signs of increased activity from infrastructure spending. At 11 times next year's earnings, buy on weakness.

Clapham House took a £24m hit on a failure to sell its Tootsies chain, which is 'understood' to have suffered a double-digit like-for-like sales decline, while Gourmet Burger Kitchen was flat and the Real Greek up a shade. It meant a swing from a pre-tax profit of £1.3m to a loss of £26m. GBK is under margin pressure and chairman David Page says green shoots are 'invisible'. The potential of GBK remains significant. That is why Capricorn Ventures, the owner of Nando's, sits on a 25% stake. Other shareholders should follow suit. Hold.

• Clapham clears way for sale of Tootsies

The Independent

The Investment Column is also downbeat on Michael Page, noting that there could be 'more pain to come' from a stock that follows the economic cycle. Anaylsts at Astaire prefer rival Hays, which 'offers more defensive qualities and yield of 7%'. Avoid

Big Yellow Group, the storage business, has seen its shares rise 44% in the last quarter with yesterday's trading statement reporting rising occupancy rates. Big Yellow would be our pick within the sector but with plenty of commentators predicting a double-dip recession, we would be inclined to wait for a little while before buying. Cautious hold.

Energy services group Cape revealed no surprises and as such they will hope that the remarkable 206% share price surge in the last six months continues unabated. There was some disappointing news yesterday with some work in Australia delayed. But on the back of continually strengthening energy markets, 'Cape will not let investors down'. Buy.

Cape shares performance

Questor focused on the oil price, saying that the long-term oil price trend is 'definitely higher', with support given by expectations of growing future demand. But the current glut of oil in the market will mean prices aren't likely to spike higher in the very near future – but if under-investment continues another oil price spike is inevitable, it concluded.

Its sector picks are BP, because of its dividend. But gor future production growth, it tips Tullow Oil, Dana Petroleum, Afren and Venture Production. In liquefied natural gas, BG Group is the preferred play and there is a buy stance on three oil service companies: Wood Group, Petrofac and Cape.

• Predictions summary: What next for oil?

Tuesday

The Times

Talvivaara is something of an oddity, not only is it the only FTSE 350 company whose shares trade in Helsinki, it is the only mid-cap miner whose assets sit in the eurozone. However, its shares are best avoided until volume production begins. Avoid.

In the past three months, Invesco has acquired 25% of the Aim-listed Ashley House, a construction services tiddler that is a sort of Carillion for primary care. The shares at 80p, or six times current-year earnings, are worth buying on weakness.

The Daily Telegraph

Last month J Sainsbury increased first-quarter sales by 7.8% on a like-for-like basis, far outpacing the sales growth seen by larger rival Tesco. However, the supermarket is still third place in the market and with the continuing uncertainty about the economy and its shareholder base, the shares are still a hold.

Phorm has a controversial technology, WebWise, that monitors what you look at on the web and targets advertising. It has faced fierce opposition. It is difficult to have faith in a business without income. Start-ups can only survive on a good idea for so long. Sell.

Phorm shares performance