Sunday share tips: Imperial Innovations, Lloyds

11th Oct 2015 14:46

(ShareCast News) - Imperial Innovations has invested £198m in dozens of companies since its foundation, in 1986. Despite some rare successes, such as with biotech outfit Circassia, overall the company has shown little ambition, preferring to invest in small and immature outfits.That is unlike its US peers, which hand young start-ups loads of funds and tell them to shoot for the moon.That shows up in the company's share price performance, up at a compound annual rate of 3.2% since it floated in 2006. Yes, that's more than inflation, but not much more. Nor does the firm intend to hand back any of its £153m cash pile."There are plenty of other ways to earn 3.2%," writes The Sunday Times Danny Fortson.Ahead of the Chancellor's sale of £2bn-worth of Lloyds shares to retail investors next March, one must ask, are they a buy?Unlike other government flotations, the lender's stock is already traded on the market and there is a bonus built-in to discourage those who might seek a fast buck.The most important aspect however is the dividend yield. The 4p payout for 2016 implies a healthy yield of more than 5%, with another 5p expected for 2016.The shares are not risk-free, of course, but the Lloyd's of today bears a closer resemblance to the banking stocks of yesteryear - secure, long-term, high-yielding investments. "In other words, an attractive buy for income investors," says the Mail on Sunday's Midas column.