Wednesday tips round-up: Abcam, National Express, IG

Abcam initially produced primary antibodies, tools used in genetic research. Four fifths of its products go into laboratories and other research facilities funded by the public purse, which is a weakness. The company floated on AIM in 2005 with a market capitalisation of £57.5 million and is now worth £626m. The shares sell on almost 24 times this year's earnings. A success story, then, but with much of that success seemingly already in the price, says the Times.National Express's $200m deal to buy Petermann Partners, the school bus operator, makes sense. The acquisition comes on the back of results in July that showed improving trends in the UK group's North American arm. Adding Petermann bolsters the division and paves the way for further growth. Despite boasting prospective yields of well over 4 per cent, National Express shares trade on a forward earnings multiple of around eight times. Buy, says the Independent.Shares in IG Group look a simple bet. If you think that the world will become a much better place tomorrow, with an immediate return to financial stability, they are a clear sell. For those of us who live in the real world, there seems little prospect of the market turbulence that has boosted revenues so sharply at IG coming to a halt. That is not to say the shares are a screaming buy; they sell on more than 13 times' earnings, which looks high for a business with so little forward visibility of revenue. Though the shares look toppy, an interesting bet on further hard times, says the Times.People are shopping more carefully and wasting less meat. This is good news generally, but not so good for Hilton Food Group. First-half sales for this supplier of Tesco and supermarkets on the Continent were up 10.3 per cent, but 6 per cent came from food price inflation and 2% from favourable currency movements. Only 2.3% was a genuine rise in volumes sold and this came from countries such as Sweden. The outturn in the UK was flat. For this year, the shares sell on about 11.5 times' earnings, which does not suggest an immediate reason to buy, says the Times.Tullow Oil, the FTSE 100 explorer, is walking tall at the moment after striking oil off the coast of French Guiana with its first "wildcat" exploration well in virgin hydrocarbon territory. Analysts hailed the South American find as a "game-changer" for Tullow while the market sent its shares up by 15% after its announcement on Friday - adding more than £1.4bn to its market capitalisation. With a normalised price to earnings ratio of 32.3 times and an enterprise multiple of 10.1, Tullow looks like a strong buy, according to the Independent.He may know how to take down the Daleks and the Cybermen but will Doctor Who be able to save Character Group - which makes toys of the BBC1 hero - from a Europe-wide sovereign debt crisis? The company, which also makes Bob the Builder and Peppa Pig toys, said it would meet results expectations and added the directors were pleased with the distribution of the brands for Christmas and the spring. Nonetheless, in a bid to protect itself, the company is tightening its stock control, which will protect profitability and cash flow, although it will not maximise potential sales. These measures, its stable of brands and the forward earnings multiple of under seven times make this one to buy, according to the Independent.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.---RG