Tuesday tips round-up: Kingfisher, William Hill, Homeserve

14th Jun 2011 06:37

It is not always appreciated that B&Q owner Kingfisher, which also has operations in Turkey, Russia, Spain and China, achieves 60% of its sales and profits outside the UK. This gives it a significant counterpoint to the woes of the high street here. The shares sell on less than 12 times this year's earnings, which makes them one of the few appealing plays in the sector, according to the Times.At 9.5 times forecast full-year earnings for 2011, bookmaker William Hill's stock is cheaper than rival Ladbrokes at 10.3 times but yields less at 4.2% against 5.3% for Ladbrokes. Still, more than 4% is well worth having. Of course, Mr Topping needs to deliver to justify the package he has been handed. Shareholders should therefore put him under the whip. The Independent says buy.Homeserve sells insurance for home emergency repairs, with its network of tradesmen able to sort problems ranging from burst pipes and broken boilers, to broken electrical appliances and getting your locks changed. Whilst the shares look a little expensive, trading at 19 times earnings, the company will hope that continued expansion overseas leads to a substantial increase in the number of policy holders and helps to drive growth. The Scotsman says buy.It is improbable that any Western bank could match the terms on offer from the state-run China Development Bank Corporation to Kazakhmys to develop its huge Aktogay copper mine in Kazakhstan. The company has obtained a $1.5bn (£920m) loan facility from the Chinese bank to develop the project. This is 15-year money for a project that will take five years or so to reach full production. No Western bank would take such a risk, but the Chinese State can afford to and it helps to secure supplies of this key metal. Kazakhmys shares were up 26p at £12.35 last night; worth a punt, though the usual risks remain, says the Times.Outsourcer Xchanging in 2008 bought 76% of Cambridge Solutions, a quoted Indian business. The purchase was a disaster. Several weeks ago Cambridge sold its loss-making American business. Now Xchanging has moved to buy outright the bits of Cambridge it wants, an Australian workers' compensation business and an Indian business outsourcer. The discovery of the problems in India prompted the shares to collapse from well above £2 to a low of 52¾p in February. Some analysts believe this tidying up could make the company more attractive to a larger rival. Highly speculative, but interesting, says the Times.Advanced Computer Software provides software and IT services, specialising in the healthcare and business sectors. Singer has the stock on 8.3 times on the estimates for 2012, a substantial discount to its rivals. What with the strength of yesterday's results and the management's bullish outlook, the stock should provide upside gains, according to the Independent.Fund manager City of London Investment said funds under management had risen nearly 18% to £3.54bn over the past 12 months, and predicted its full-year pre-tax profit would end up increasing by more than a quarter. The fund manager also gave the latest on attempts to diversify into natural resources and developed market closed-end funds, reporting "significant progress", which looks promising. With the update giving little cause for worry, we would add to our holding, says the Independent.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