UK Stocks to Watch for in September

The Brexit hysteria appears to have died down, which means traders can focus once again on the fundamentals. Perhaps surprisingly, London’s FTSE 100 Index has shot up nearly 14% since the post-Brexit selloff. UK stocks are currently trading at their highest level of the year, and look poised to continue that rally in September. Having said that, below are five UK stocks we’ll be closely following throughout September.

BP Plc.

2016 has not been a kind year to BP Plc, the London-based oil and gas giant. The company recently posted its third consecutive quarter of losses,[1] as the oil-price collapse continued to wreak havoc on energy producers. But that’s what makes September so interesting.

Oil futures, as traded on the easyMarkets CFDs commodities exchange, have surged over the past three weeks after OPEC ministers confirmed they will be holding informal talks with Russia and other major producers in Algeria at the end of September.[2] As oil prices rally north of $50 a barrel, energy stocks should be closely monitored.

Lloyds Bank

Banking continues to be one of the more volatile segments of the stock market, and that’s precisely what makes Lloyds an interesting bet. The bank boasts strong fundamentals and has comfortably passed recent stress tests performed by the Bank of England (BOE).[3] Amid the latest drama concerning Italian banks and their exposure to bad loans, Lloyds offers dependability in an uncertain market.

Unfortunately, it hasn’t been a good year for UK banks. Lloyd’s took a major hit after Brexit, but has gradually regained its footing over the summer.

Rio Tinto

Rio Tinto is a London-based mining company that also happens to be the 20th biggest component on the FTSE 100. The mining giant has operations around the world, and could be among the biggest to benefit from a plunging British pound. Despite what you read in the papers, mining resources are still in high demand in emerging markets like China and India. In places like China, demand may have peaked, but that doesn’t mean it has disappeared. British pounds are dirt cheap and could fall even further as the BOE considers additional stimulus measures to support the economy.[4]

The Bank slashed interest rates in August to a new all-time low and expanded the size of its bond purchasing program.[5] Sterling continues to hover around 31-year lows against the dollar, having shown very little upside since the June 23 referendum. The GBP/USD exchange rate, one of the most widely traded pairs on the easyMarkets forex platform, has declined around 11% since the June 23 Brexit vote.

Diageo

Diageo may not sound familiar, but many traders have enjoyed its products in the form of Guinness, Smirnoff, Johnnie Walker and Hennessy. Diageo is a British multinational alcoholic beverage company. It is the 11th largest company on the FTSE 100, and enjoys massive brand power internationally. The company’s earnings have run into a bit of a rough patch recently, with phrases like “adverse exchange” being used to describe currency headwinds. As we mentioned above, Brexit has turned the currency headwind into a tailwind.[6] Traders can expect UK companies with a strong international presence to receive a boost now that British goods are a whole lot cheaper.

ARM

British microchip maker ARM has had a stellar summer. Its stock surged over 40% in July after it was acquired by SoftBank Group for $32 billion in cash.[7] The stock is currently trading at all-time highs, leading to the obvious question of how high can it go.

To be sure, the company has experienced steady growth since the 2008 financial crisis due to its important position in technology market. US chipmaker and Dow component Intel Corporation recently announced that it will be licensing technology from its rival across the Atlantic. Intel will use ARM technology to offer companies more advanced 10-nanometer production lines to manufacturer chips for smartphones.[8] This is a solid value chain for ARM, which is having an incredible year, to say the least.

For that reason, the London-based chipmaker could make some noise in September. It will certainly be worth watching as the markets continue to speculate about its future.

[1] Selina Williams (July 26, 2016). “BP Suffers Third Straight Quarterly Loss.” The Wall Street Journal.

[2] Summer Said (August 8, 2016). “OPEC to Hold Talks in September, as Oil Market Takes Downturn.” The Wall Street Journal.

[3] Michael McGath (January 6, 2016). “Hargreaves Lansdown’s 5 stocks to watch in 2016.” City Wire Money.

[4] Jim Collins (June 24, 2016). “Buy The Best Of British Stocks When Brexit Hysteria Subsides.” Forbes.

[5] Thomson Reuters (August 4, 2016). “Bank of England cuts rates for first time since 2009.” CBC News.

[6] Jim Collins (June 24, 2016). “Buy The Best Of British Stocks When Brexit Hysteria Subsides.” Forbes.

[7] Marie Cabural (July 18, 2016). “ARM Holdings (ARMH) Surges over 40% on SoftBank Deal.” Opp Trends.

[8] Rachel Aldrich (August 16, 2016). “Intel (INTC) Stock Up, Licensing ARM Holdings Technology.” The Street.

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