Thursday tips round-up: Hogg Robinson, BTG, Aveva

26th May 2011 06:42

Business travel is one of the first to be hit by any economic downturn, as less business means less travel. Hogg Robinson took immediate action when the crunch came, cutting its cost base by 20%. A final dividend of 1p makes a total up by a quarter to 1½p, well covered, giving a historic yield of about 2.5% and the board is offering a better return in due course. But the market's scepticism may not be allayed too soon; a weak hold, according to the Times.Trading on just over seven times next year's forecast full-year earnings, the shares remain keenly priced and business travel is still growing into a recovering global economy. Hold for now but buy again on any weakness, is the Independent's view on Hogg Robinson.It is difficult, and frankly pointless, to try to decipher the profit and loss account of BTG for the year to the end of March. The company, one of Britain's biggest specialist biotech concerns, had to buy out its American partner Nycomed to gain exclusivity to a couple of useful drugs. The best that can be said for BTG is that it should tip into some sort of profit in 2012-13. Investors should travel hopefully, says the Times.Instead of cultivating home consumers, software company Aveva focuses on big companies with its expertise in engineering software. In particular, it has an enviable position in the oil, gas and power markets. Numis now puts the stock on under 25 times forward earnings, which is an improvement. There is also little doubt that this a strong business, with stellar prospects. There was nothing in yesterday's statement that would justify a sell recommendation. Hold, says the Independent.Yesterday's half-yearly results prompted plenty of bullishness at Innovation.The last financial year saw the small-cap software group radically reshape its business, and the figures certainly suggest that the strategy is working - and working well. The results certainly seem to validate the new team's approach, and although there is still a lot of work to do, Innovation looks like it's on the right track. Buy, the Independent advises.DS Smith is an international packaging supplier and office products wholesaler, involved in the supply of corrugated and plastic packaging and recycled paper and the wholesaling of office products. On consensus forecasts, DS Smith shares are trading on a p/e of a little over 12 and offer a dividend yield effective of about 3%, with the prospect of a more generous distribution policy as earnings improve. This appears to, as they say, tick many of the contemporary "recycled" and environmental boxes. Buy, says the Scotsman.Please note: Digital Look provides a round-up of news, tips and information that is impacting share prices and the market. Digital Look cannot take any responsibility for information provided by third parties. This is for your general information only as not intended to be relied upon by users in making an investment decision or any other decision. Please obtain a copy of the relevant publication and carry out your own research before considering acting on any of this information.---RG