An old adage suggests that stock market investors go away in May and take a few months off investing. But I have no plans to do that. Below are five investing ideas I would consider using this June if I had spare cash to invest.
Tripadvisor
The boom in leisure travel over the past couple of years following pandemic travel restrictions has been a boon for sales revenues at Tripadvisor.
But investors do not seem to like the story much and its shares have been moving downwards lately.
I think that is partly because costs at the business have also been increasing quickly, posing a risk to profit margins. But with its strong brand, large customer base, unique customer offering and cash-rich balance sheet, I consider Tripadvisor as attractively priced.
ITV
Having recently received a dividend from my existing holding in broadcaster and production house ITV, I was reminded of its income potential.
A decline in advertising demand could hurt profits. But for now at least, advertisers have kept spending at close to normal levels. ITV also does well from its Studio business. It has benefitted from growing demand for studio space from streaming platforms.
With a large user base, growing digital footprint and proven profitable business model, I continue to see ITV shares as attractively priced. Among my recent investing ideas, ITV is one I remain excited about, even after adding to my position in the past few months.
Income & Growth
The Income & Growth venture capital trust is also on my radar as a possible buy for my portfolio.
I like its focus on investing in small companies, holding for a number of years then selling the shares, allowing it to generate money to fund dividends. Income & Growth has paid handsome dividends in recent years and I think that could continue. At the moment, it has a yield close to 11%.
In the current weak economy, performance at some of the businesses in which it invests could suffer. That may mean lower profits and dividends at Income & Growth. But as a long-term investor, I would happily add the share to my portfolio.
JD Sports
I remain enthusiastic about the outlook for retailer JD Sports. It has had a tremendous history of growth – but I think the best may be yet to come.
The US is a huge market for sportswear and JD Sports is already a big force there. Its plan to open hundreds of new stores annually, including substantially increasing its US store footprint, could help it grow market share.
Leisurewear might see lower demand in a recession, hurting sales at JD. But for now at least, there are no signs its customers are spending less at the chain. From a long-term perspective, I think JD Sports remains a compelling growth story.
Legal & General
The financial services business Legal & General may not seem very exciting, but that is actually one of its attractions for me.
It has a large client base and proven business model, meaning the highly cash generative firm can fund a sizeable dividend. The yield is around 8%.
Although dividends are never guaranteed, management plans a modest raise again next year and I am optimistic that the Legal & General dividend could increase annually in coming years.
