Thursday tips round-up: JD Wetherspoon, Spirent Communications

3rd May 2012 07:24

In the Times, Tempus weighs up whether to take a swig of pub chain JD Wetherspoon. It's going toe to toe with heavily indebted rivals so its well capitalised balance sheet is an asset but the city is worried about margins. The founder and 25% owner of the firm, Tim Martin, has decided to curb aggressive expansion which Tempus agrees with. Trading at 11 times earnings though, in a difficult environment the investor column is going to take it easy, not have one for the road and avoid a headache in the morning. Hold.Rather more appealingly for Tempus, technology firm Spirent Communications trades on 15 times earnings which, given its markets, is not bad. Revenues gained 16% in the testing division in the first quarter - the kind of growth not to be sneezed at. Buy.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.