I don’t have unlimited reserves of cash I can use to buy UK shares. But here are two top penny stocks I’d happily buy to hold until at least 2030.
The Fulham Shore
Britain’s restaurant operators like The Fulham Shore (LSE:FUL) face significant uncertainty in the near term. Consumers could continue to tighten their wallets as the economy wallows. And costs across the industry might also continue to soar.
Yet I believe this bad news could be baked into Fulham Shore’s ultra-low share price. At 11p per share the penny stock has lost a whopping 29% of its value in the last year.
Whats more, the business is a stronger position than many other UK leisure stocks. It has a robust balance sheet to help it ride through any fresh troubles with net cash of £700,000 as of mid-December.
I’m also encouraged by the company’s focus on more affluent regions of the UK. The majority of its Franco Manca restaurants are in London and all of its The Real Greek eateries in the capital and South-East England.
There are enough consumers in these regions who don’t feel pressure to tighten their purse strings when times get tough. This in part explains why Fulham Shore’s revenues shot 26% higher in the six months to September.
I think the business could generate strong long-term profits at it expands its restaurant estate. It opened 22 new sites in the 15 months to mid-December to take the total to 97. It has also recently inked a franchise agreement to open Franco Manca restaurants in Spain.
Finally, an agreement to sell Franco Manca-branded pizzas in supermarkets from last November could significantly boost the brand and give restaurant sales an extra boost.
European Metals Holdings
Rising energy costs are a huge threat to mining companies’ profitability. Expenses can also shoot through the roof if common problems at the exploration, development and production stages occur.
However, I still believe European Metals Holding Limited (LSE:EMH) is an attractive penny stock to buy for growth investors. As electric vehicle sales take off, demand for the product it pulls from its mining complex in Czechia could balloon.
You see the business produces lithium from the gigantic Cinovec asset in Central Europe. This puts the company at the heart of the continent’s carbuilding industry. It’s also located in a part of the world where legislators are making it increasingly easier to do business.
Cinovec was officially designated as a strategic project by the European Union in January, a move that boosts funding access. Then last week the European Commission announced its Green Deal Industrial Plan in a bid to boost production of key materials like lithium. This could make it easier for mining companies to obtain permits.
UK share investors have many companies to choose from to make cash from the green energy transition. I think European Metals Holding could prove one of the best.
