Newspaper and magazine share tips

By This Is Money
Updated: 07:36 EDT, 14 August 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.

Tips: All the latest newspaper and magazine tips.

FRIDAY

Investors Chronicle

Iron-ore project developer African Minerals has had a fantastic rise in share price since November. However, it does not yet produce ore, and its major project is based in Sierra Leone, which is highly risky due to the civil war a few years ago. Comparing to another FTSE listed iron ore producer, African Minerals it still looks overpriced. Sell.

Shares in the defence sector have lost out in the stock market this year, with investors dumping 'safe but dull' ventures for riskier ones. QinetiQ's shares have been a notable loser, underperforming its peers by 20% since the beginning of the year. Growth looks to be indifferent and there is no enticing dividend yield to support the share price. Sell.

The Daily Telegraph

Primary Health Properties, one of the largest providers of primary healthcare properties in the UK, had one of the safest dividends around when it was last recommended in December – and this remains the same. The shares, trading on a December 2008 multiple of 14.8 times, are a buy for the dividend.

Standard placed shares with institutional investors to take advantage of new business opportunities. It then revealed it was embarking on a hiring spree to compete with HSBC and Citigroup. The bank was recommended recently, and the shares are up 14% since they were tipped. Buy.

The Times

Travel group Thomas Cook has acknowledged that it will miss the 2010 profit target made two years ago. However, the company maintained it is in a strong position to meet full-year forecasts, despite the tough consumer spending background. At 219p, or eight times next year's earnings, hold on.

Next month David Potter will step down as chairman from Psion, the mobile computing group he founded. Yesterday the group reported a £14m loss for the six months to June 30 on sales down 27%. There are however, tentative signs of a pick-up despite pressure on capital expenditure in its core market. Psion has a strong market position and at ten times next year's earnings, buy.

The Independent

Despite Tomkins' sales being down by a third and dividend cuts, the shares were looking strong yesterday. The engineering group had an operating profit of just over a third of the figure last time, which whilst being low, was higher than analysts were expecting. Trading at thirty-four times next year's earnings, it is difficult to justify buying them. Cash in and sell.

Psion brought in new chief executive John Conoley last year, who has cut costs and repositioned them for growth. There are tentative signs this strategy is working, in spite of a first half loss of £1.1m on sales. The stock is trading on 5.1 times estimated earnings for a full year, almost a third less than its peers. There is value to be had if the plans work but it is early to call a recovery. Hold.

The sandwich-maker Greencore, which supplies salads, ready-meals and bottled water to the UK's biggest supermarkets, revealed that convenience food sales had risen by 2.5%. Its fledgling US convenience foods business has already signed up big names, and although it has a net debt of between €280m and €300m, there is potential. Buy.

THURSDAY

The Independent

BHP Billiton, has announced that full-year profits had dropped by half; its first profit decline in 7 years. Wait until the full impact of the Chinese Stimulus package has worked before jettisoning the stock. Cautious hold.

Balfour Beatty is going 'great guns' despite a miserable year for construction companies, say The Independent. This is largely due to spreading out the work between different markets and countries. Stock is looking to head North. Buy.

Trifast, the industrial fastening distributors, reported that trading in the first three months of the year was the same as last years. Wait for more tangible results before purchasing. Hold.

Shares Magazine

Clapham House Group, who own the Gourmet Burger Kitchen chain, are looking to gain from better trading conditions. The market is re-rating the sector amid greater expectations for trading. Buy.

Arriva, the transport operator, was a good short-term trade back in May. However, poor trading fro peer National Express, has knocked the whole sector. Sell and take profits.

The Daily Telegraph

Balfour Beatty is still going strong despite likely cuts in public spending in the future. The company reported an 8% rise in the interim dividend, and the shares closed up at 8.26% yesterday. At these levels, the shares are a buy.

HSBC Infrastructure Fund recently acquired two Scottish Schools private finance initiative (PFI) projects for £23.6m, bringing the total number of infrastructure investments to 30. Buy these shares for the income.

The Times

Aquarius Platinum announced a swing from a $237m profit to a $47m loss yesterday. Short term movements are hard to divine, which suggests that at 20 times 2010 earnings, and with no dividend on offer, there will be better times to buy. Avoid for now.

Balfour Beatty's shares are 5% higher than in January, when the company entered the FTSE 100. The pressure to accelerate public sector outsourcing and the expected benefits of a US stimulus spending in 2010 should ensure profits still move ahead. Hold.

Mitie Group, once best known as a hoarder of cash, seems to have no aversion to spending it. Yesterday the group bought the technical facilities management division of Dalkia, part of France's Veolia for £130m; ten times operating profits. Given the estimated 9% boost to next years profits, the shares should be bought on weakness. Avoid for now.

WEDNESDAY

The Daily Telegraph

International Power has warned that lower demand for power will mean reduced profits by the end of 2009. However, yesterday it reported a 43% increase in cash flow, and earnings per share rose by 11%. The 'long-term future is sparky', says the Daily Telegraph. Buy.

Greggs has a new share price of 400p, and has been performing well recently despite a difficult trading environment. Although wariness is advised when investing into the retail sector at the moment, Greggs is well positioned to weather the economic downturn which makes the shares a buy.

The Independent

InterContinental Hotels Group, which runs the Holiday Inn and Crowne Plaza chains, announced yesterday that revenue was down in the second-quarter, and had recorded a loss of $82m. Buying these shares long-term may pay off in three years but for the moment they are a cautious hold.

Greggs announced a slight decline in sales recently, but like-for-like sales rose by 1.5% over the first half of the year, and the operating profit was ahead of City expectations. Buy.

NWF Group, which distributes groceries, fuel and animal feed, reported that profits, dividend and revenues hit record levels in the year to the end of May. Yesterday's 7.1% fall in shares indicates profit-taking, and whilst the group has medium-to-long-term potential, keep the group in mind for later. Avoid for now.

The Times

Greggs is working on simplifying the chain by standardizing products and converting Baker's Oven shops. This means they can go ahead with their plan of more than 2,000 stores, compared to 1,400 now. It is also moving into the travel market – service stations, airports and railway stations. Buy.

Collins Stewart, the brokers, has announced that first-half profits fell 36% to £6.1m. Surprisingly, profits were limited by bonus payments which, it argued, are necessary to retain the best staff. As more companies turn to the market for more cash, says The Times, 'Collins Stewart should benefit'. Hold.

TUESDAY

The Times

Morgan Sindall is now seeing signs of life just six weeks after it reported tougher trading conditions. At 615.4, seven times forecast earnings for 2010, and yielding 6%, hold on.

Shares in Southern Cross have been heading north: up 40% in three months. At 140.5, or 8 times 2010 earnings, the shares are up with events. Pass.

The Daily Telegraph

Emerging markets have been performing better than Western Markets in the recent bull run. Templeton Emerging Market Inv Trust's shares are up 31% since their January recommendation on January 5. Hold.