Newspaper Tips & Round-Up

LONDON (ShareCast) - Greene King (LSE: GNK.L - news) , the pub operator and brewer, reckons it is in a much better position than many of its rivals. The group issued its full-year numbers yesterday, saying that profits fell by 15%, which beat most analysts' expectations and led to a 3% rise in the share price.

It is certainly one of the more impressive names in the sector and has the proceeds from its £200m rights issue to spend on acquisitions in the coming months. Buy says the Independent.

The combination of strong assets, maintained investment levels and good cost controls, not to mention the retention of a dividend, make Greene King a potent brew. At 422½p, up 12¼p, or nine times earnings, and yielding 5%, hold on adds the Times (1832.HK - news) .

Video game retailer Game blamed yesterday's sharp share price fall on investors not fully understanding the investment case and only looking at the first-half drop in sales. For those that did not read the announcement properly, margins will grow by between 150 and 175 basis points, while the group will save £16m from the completed integration of Gamestation stores. Yesterday's numbers were inglorious, but there is value in the shares and, for that reason, buy says the Independent.

The architect of Photo-Me's revival, its chief executive, Thierry Barel, leaves the group today for a better job in France. While the search is on for a replacement, investors should be concerned that the hero of the hour is leaving. Nonetheless, punters should be impressed by the improvements the company has made and now have the opportunity to buy what is still a cheap stock. Buy says the Independent.

If corporate technology budgets are under pressure, there is little sign of it at NCC Group (LSE: NCC.L - news) . NCC (Stockholm: NCC-A.ST - news) 's advantage is that, although it sits in the software sector, it has an annuity-like income more akin to an insurer. Its biggest niche is source code escrow: serving as a repository for computer programs — whether for databases or billing systems — that its clients deem critical. At 330p, a multiple of 11 times earnings is inexpensive for such growth, and the prospect of more of the same. Buy on weakness says the Times.

Oil services specialist Wellstream benefited from the oil price rally that peaked last summer, but it has encouraged additional capacity into its sector that is now coming on stream — particularly from rivals Technip (Paris: FR0000131708 - news) of France and NKT (Copenhagen: NKT.CO - news) of Denmark. That raises concerns over whether Wellstream's above-average operating margins — 22% in 2008 — can be sustained. At 517½p, or 11 times 2009 earnings, a premium to its peers, avoid.

Wood Group shares are trading on a December 2009 earnings multiple of 10.6 times. Based on next year's earnings forecasts, when the trough in earnings should be reached, the shares are on a prospective multiple of 11.8 times, which is not too stretched. The shares are only yielding 2%, however. Shares in Wood, which are up 37% since their recommendation on December 23 last year, remain a buy says the Telegraph.

This week's update from Cineworld was strong, as blockbuster cinema releases such as Slumdog Millionaire, X-Men Origins and Transformers 2 lured people out to the movies. The shares trade on a December 2009 earnings multiple of 10 and are yielding a very impressive 6.5%. Cineworld remains a buy says the Telegraph.

This week, International Power (LSE: IPR.L - news) unveiled the disposal of its Czech business, which will help to cut debt. The company had found the Czech market very competitive and this move had been flagged. The shares yield 4.9% and trade on a December 2009 earnings multiple of 8.5 times. A buy for income seekers says the Telegraph.

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