We asked our writersto share their top stock picks for the month of May, and this is what they had to say:
Peter Stephens: British American Tobacco
The old adage sell in May and just walk away could be particularly relevant for investors this year. The General Election could cause investors to become uncertain regarding the future prospects for the economy particularly if polls narrow in the coming weeks.
Therefore, buying a defensive stock with stable growth forecasts may be a shrewd move. British American Tobacco (LSE: BATS) has a robust growth rate and solid income prospects, which may prove popular with inflation moving higher. Its purchase of the remainder of Reynolds will make it the biggest tobacco stock in the world, which may mean even greater stability and resilience in future.
Peter Stephens owns shares of British American Tobacco.
Disclosure: Rupert owns no share mentioned.
Jack Tang: Derwent London
My top stock pick for May is property company Derwent London (LSE: DLN). The REIT is attractively valued, with shares trading at a 15% discount to its net asset value (NAV), compared to the UK property sectors average discount of 4%.
Of course, investors are concerned about its exposure to the Central London office market, given the uncertainty that Brexit has created. However, tight supply due to a lack of development activity in recent years should keep vacancy rates low and support further rental growth in the medium term. So far, Derwent Londons asset values have held up pretty well NAV per share increased 0.5% in 2016 to 3,551p.
Disclosure: No positions
G A Chester: Dominos Pizza Group
Dominos Pizza (LSE: DOM) shares dived after its annual results in March. There was nothing wrong with them, including typically strong like-for-like sales growth of 7.5%.
However, a slowing to 1.5% in the first weeks of the new financial year upset the market. And despite management subsequently saying it expects a recovery to 5-6%, the shares remain depressed.
Dominos long-term growth story remains intact, in my view, and I side with the more bullish analysts, whose earnings forecasts put the company on an historically low P/E of under 20. As such, I think now could be an opportune time to invest.
G A Chester has no position in Dominos Pizza.
Edward Sheldon: International Consolidated Airlines
My top stock for May is International Consolidated Airlines (LSE: IAG).
The airline operator has been a strong performer in recent years with earnings rising significantly, and on consensus FY2017 earnings of 0.88, the stock trades on a P/E ratio of just 7.5 right now. Furthermore, the yield on offer is a robust 3.6%, forecast to grow by 3% and 8% over the next two years.
This looks good value to me and Im clearly not alone in my thinking, as the fact that the company is buying back its own shares suggests that management also believe the share price is undervalued at present.
Edward Sheldon has no position in International Consolidated Airlines
Kevin Godbold: Luceco
Electrical accessory and LED lighting products manufacturer Lucecos (LSE: LUCE) arrival on the London stock market in October provided new funds that look set to turbocharge investment in growth.
The FTSE Small Cap firm reckons recent expansion of its factory in China will enable innovative new products to drive margins, sales and earnings higher as the company expands abroad. The plan appears to be working and Luceco sports an impressive set of financial numbers, which have helped the shares put in a perky performance so far. I think May, and the rest of 2017, look like being very interesting for the firms shareholders.
Kevin owns shares in Luceco.
Paul Summers: On The Beach
My pick is online travel agent On the Beach (LSE: OTB). Since hitting a low of 177p last July, this undeniably cyclical stock has climbed a very encouraging 86%.
Februarys encouraging trading update revealed a 20% year-on-year rise in revenue for the four months to the end of January. On the Beachs board also stated its belief that the company was well positioned to generate strong growth in 2017 something reflected in the stocks low PEG ratio of just 0.76.
With a net cash position, flexible business model, decent free cashflow and far higher operating margins than larger operators, Im optimistic that shares in this disruptive small cap will continue climbing both before and after half-year results on 11th May.
Paul Summers own shares in On the Beach
Roland Head: Redrow
FTSE 250 housebuilder Redrow (LSE: RDW) has risen by 33% this year, after a steady stream of broker upgrades. Despite this, the groups stock still trades at a discount to some of its larger peers.
Im not sure this discount is justified. Pre-tax profit is expected to climb 22% to 306m this year and the groups operating margin has risen from 10% to 19% over the last five years.
Redrow appears to be operating well and generating increasing amounts of surplus cash. I think theres scope for significant dividend growth this year, ahead of current forecasts.
Roland owns shares of Redrow.
You dont need to be a genius to see that consumers across the world are increasingly going cashless. One company cashing in on this is in a major way is payment processor Worldpay (LSE: WPG). The company is consistently growing sales, profits and cash flow at double-digits by increasing market share and moving into new countries.
The companys asset-light business model, stellar margins, and high cash generation give plenty of room for huge shareholder returns in the coming years. And with its shares relatively sanely priced at 22 times earnings, Worldpay is one to watch in May.
Ian Pierce has no position in Worldpay.
Buy-And-Hold Investing
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