The April 5 deadline for ISA investors to max out this year’s allowance is just around the corner. I’ve been looking for cheap UK shares to buy before the time limit expires. And I’ve been hunting for top US shares to load into my Stocks and Shares ISA too.
Here are two top stocks from both sides of the Atlantic I’m considering buying today.
A UK share for an inflationary spike
I think Shanta Gold (LSE: SHG) could prove to be a top penny stock to buy as fears of rising inflation worsen. Precious metals prices have come off the boil recently. However, I think demand for so-called hard currencies could soar again as doubts concerning the value of their paper equivalents increase. A Bank of America survey shows that tension over an inflationary spike now dwarfs fund managers’ concerns over the Covid-19 pandemic.
I’m also encouraged to buy Shanta Gold because production looks set to rise throughout 2020 as a third mill at its New Luika gold mine in Tanzania is set to come on-line. This explains why City analysts think earnings at the UK mining share will rise 90% in 2020. Incidentally this leaves the company trading on a forward price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of just 6 times.
Remember, though, that the business of raw materials production is replete with operational risk. The political environment in Tanzania has also been hostile to the mining industry in recent years. There’s always a real chance that these bright profits forecasts could be blown off course, pulling this share price significantly lower.
Charge of the EV brigade
I also think that Blink Charging (NASDAQ: BLNK) could provide excellent shareholder returns as electric car sales take off. According to IHS Markit, a whopping 2.5m new electric vehicles (EVs) rolled off the forecourts in 2020. The number is predicted to swell to a staggering 12.2m by the middle of the decade.
It’s a theme that Blink Charging — which creates and operates charging stations for EVs across the US — is well placed to exploit. This US share currently operates around 23,000 such stations and is expanding through a blend of organic investment and acquisitions. Bear in mind, though, that the company isn’t expected to turn a profit before 2023.
High sales of EVs have been helped in large part by generous grants globally. So any sign of reductions in such incentives could have a significant impact on demand for Blink’s services. This week, for instance, here in the the UK the government reduced the maximum grant under its scheme by £500 to £2,500. It slashed the scheme’s purchase price cap to £35,000 from £50,000 as well. Authorities in the gigantic Chinese car market are also set to cut subsidies over the next couple of years. Similar proposals could once again rear their head in the US, though a quest to hit carbon-reduction targets could encourage lawmakers to keep the grants coming. We just don’t know at present.