Business Day TV: Stock picks — Lotus Bakeries and Hammerson

Jean Pierre Verster from Fairtree Capital chose Belgium-listed Lotus Bakeries as his stock pick of the day and Chantal Marx from FNB Wealth and Investments chose UK-based property company Hammerson.

Verster said that Lotus Bakeries is more than 80 years old, and “very prominent and popular in the US”.

“People love to have [the biscuits] with their coffee and more recently the company has diversified into more healthy snacks. This company is fanatical about biscuits and snacks and dominates the market in Belgium and the Netherlands. They are expanding into the US where there is a production facility going up next year.”

Marx said that although Hammerson is based in the UK, a big part of its portfolio is in Spain and in France.

“It has de-rated quite significantly over the past few months and is trading at a 40% discount to its NAV [net asset value] and, with a dividend yield of around 6%, it is looking quite attractive.”