The Stocks and Shares ISA can be an excellent product to help investors build wealth. The annual allowance of £20,000 is enough for almost all of us. And the taxman doesn’t take a penny of any gains we make.
One downside, ISA users are unable to roll over any unused allowances to future tax years. So with a few weeks left of the current financial period, the annual scramble to ‘max out’ our contribution limits is now well and truly under way.
Please note that tax treatment depends on the individual circumstances of each client and may be subject to change in future. The content in this article is provided for information purposes only. It is not intended to be, neither does it constitute, any form of tax advice. Readers are responsible for carrying out their own due diligence and for obtaining professional advice before making any investment decisions.
3 stocks on my radar
Of course, I’m not obligated to actually buy any shares, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), or any other investment before the 5 April deadline. I simply need to have deposited money in my ISA before that date.
But why wait? The FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 indices are packed with brilliant bargains today. My aim is to exploit their cheapness by snapping them up before the market catches on.
Here are three top UK shares I’m hoping to buy over the next few weeks.
TBC Bank Group
Emerging market stock TBC Bank (LSE:TBCG) continues to record impressive share price gains. Yet at £52 per share, it still offers exceptional all-round value.
The FTSE 250 firm trades on a forward price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 5.4 times. It also carries a meaty 5.3% dividend yield.
Banks are highly cyclical, and profits can sink during tough times, due to weak loan growth and rising impairments. But over the long term, I’m confident TBC Bank will deliver strong returns, as increasing personal wealth levels in Georgia continue driving financial services demand.
Pre-tax profits here have soared 125% in the past five years alone.
HSBC Holdings
Asia-focused HSBC (LSE:HSBA) is the UK’s largest listed bank. And like TBC Bank, it gives investors the opportunity to profit from fast-growing developing markets.
Unfortunately, it presents more near-term risk to investors at the moment. This is due to its dependence upon a Chinese economy that’s struggling for traction and suffering from a real estate crisis.
But the long-term outlook here remains excellent. And as one of the industry’s biggest players, HSBC can afford to spend billions to expand its presence in lucrative Asian marketplaces. It’s doing just that, helped by a series of asset sales in its Western marketplaces.
Today, the FTSE 100 firm trades on a P/E ratio of 6.6 times. It also carries a huge 8.1% dividend yield.
Centamin
Owning mining stocks can be an uncomfortable experience when metal prices sink. But pleasingly for gold-miner Centamin (LSE:CEY), bullion values have recently hit record highs and could be poised for more substantial gains.
This FTSE 250 operator owns the Sukari mine in Egypt, a site where it’s raised gold reserves for three years on the spin.
But this isn’t the only reason I’m attracted to this particular stock. It also has a number of exciting exploration assets on its books, including the Doropo project in Burkina Faso.
Having exposure to gold can be a great way for investors to de-risk their portfolios. I think Centamin, with its forward P/E ratio of 9.2 times, is an attractive share with which to do this.
