I spoke recently about the prolonged decline in new car sales in the UK, an issue caused by increased uncertainty from consumers and businesses alike in light of the unresolved Brexit problem. But as recent data from the Society of Motor Traders and Manufacturers (SMMT) shows, this political fog isn’t the only headwind Lookers et al are being swept over by.

News of a 4.9% decline in total new vehicle sales in June was bad enough, worsening from the 4.6% annual drop recorded a month earlier. What the auto body said caused it “grave concern” though, was the sharp demand drop last month for low emission cars such as hybrids and hydrogen-powered units. Sales of these vehicles dropped for the first time in 26 months on what the SMMT described as a combination of “confusing policies and the premature removal of purchase incentives.”

Looking good? No way

It would take a braver man than me to plough into Lookers right now, even though at current prices it trades on a rock-bottom forward P/E ratio of 5.1 times and carries a monster 9.1% dividend yield.

The extent of the company’s problems were highlighted on Friday when it hacked its profits estimates for the half year down to £32m (versus profits of £43m a year earlier). And I reckon this is unlikely to be the last time Lookers reduces its forecasts given the scale of market deterioration.

A 4.6% decline in new vehicle sales during quarter two is bad enough, deteriorating from 2.4% in the prior three months. “Weaker demand and the resulting margin pressure” at its used-car division in the last quarter really compounds the retailer’s woes.

With the political and economic uncertainty that’s smacking car demand promising to persist long into the future, and Lookers also facing an FCA probe into its sales processes, there’s plenty of scope for the company’s share price to keep on sinking. I reckon it’s a stock that should be avoided at all costs.

A better buy

Those looking for solid dip buys would be better off examining Georgia Healthcare Group (LSE: GHG) instead, I believe. The business, which provides a range of healthcare services (like hospital care and drugs dispensing) in the fast-growing Eurasian nation, is experiencing some stupendous revenues growth right now.

According to its most recent quarterlies, sales expanded 13% in the period to April. I’m expecting the top line to keep impressing as Georgian economic growth balloons, and the group works (and spends) heavily to expand the quality and range of its operations. On Friday, for instance, it announced it would lease space to maternity care specialist the David Davarashvili Clinic at its Iashvili Hospital in Tbilisi, a significant boost to neonatal and paediatric services at the site.

Georgia Healthcare’s share price has fallen 12% over the past month, meaning it trades on a bargain-basement forward PEG ratio of 0.5 times. Given that City analysts expect the medical mammoth to keep delivering stunning double-digit annual earnings growth, I reckon it’s a great buy today.

The post This unloved share’s fallen 50%+ in three months. Is it NOW time to buy? appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

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Royston Wild has no position in any of the shares mentioned. The Motley Fool UK has no position in any of the shares mentioned. Views expressed on the companies mentioned in this article are those of the writer and therefore may differ from the official recommendations we make in our subscription services such as Share Advisor, Hidden Winners and Pro. Here at The Motley Fool we believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.

Ring the bells

The recovery in investor appetite that’s been pushing the housebuilders higher in 2019 may have pushed Bellway’s (LSE: BWY) share price 14% higher since the bells rang in New Year’s Day, but I would consider the business to still be grossly undervalued by the market.

A forward P/E ratio of 6.4 times is dirt-cheap on paper and is at odds with the resilience of the business in the toughest conditions that the industry has faced for decades. Indeed, just this month Bellway announced that revenues swept 12% higher in the six months to February, led by a rise in both completion numbers and average selling prices (by 5.6% and 6.5% respectively) in the period.

City analysts believe the FTSE 250 firm has what it takes to keep growing earnings over the next couple of years and are thus predicting additional annual dividend growth for this period, to 147.7p per share for fiscal 2019 and 154.5p for next year. These projections yield a mammoth 5.2% and 5.4%.

Georgia on my mind

Georgia Healthcare Group (LSE: GHG) doesn’t carry the same sort of yields as Bellway but, if you’re seeking brilliant dividend growth in the years ahead, it’s a share that’s certainly worth your consideration.

City analysts expect the small-cap to pay a maiden dividend of 1.5p per share in 2019, resulting in a yield of just 0.7%. But the payout is expected to explode to 2.7p next year and this pushes the yield to 1.2%.

Financials released this month showed EBITDA up 23% in 2018, a figure that underlines just why the number crunchers are confident of scintillating dividend growth over the medium term. The firm certainly can’t be considered a flash in the pan as its expanding, integrated healthcare offering addresses the needs of an increasingly-wealthy Georgian populace.

It’s no shock that Georgia Healthcare Group is expected to report a 57% earnings explosion this year alone. And this also leaves it dealing on a sub-1 forward PEG reading of 0.3.

Fizzing dividend growth

If you’re seeking the perfect blend of dividend growth and big yields today then Britvic (LSE: BVIC) is a great share to stock up on.

It’s grown total payouts at a compound annual growth rate of around 9% over the past five fiscal years, underpinned by a sustained record of profits growth, and latest financials suggest to me that it has plenty left in the tank. According to the Fruit Shoot and Robinsons manufacturer, organic revenues (excluding the sugar tax) still rose 1.5% in the three months to December, illustrating the enduring popularity of its labels in even tough times like these.

A prospective P/E ratio of 15.6 times is quite undemanding given Britvic’s great growth record, in my opinion, and City predictions that earnings should keep expanding through the next couple of years at least. And predicted dividends of 29.5p and 31.4p per share for fiscal 2019 and 2020 respectively, figures that yield 3.2% and 3.4%, rubber-stamp the company as a sweet treat to buy today.

The post Have £1k to spend? 3 dividend stocks I believe are absurdly cheap right now appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

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Royston Wild has no position in any of the shares mentioned. The Motley Fool UK owns shares of and has recommended Britvic. Views expressed on the companies mentioned in this article are those of the writer and therefore may differ from the official recommendations we make in our subscription services such as Share Advisor, Hidden Winners and Pro. Here at The Motley Fool we believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.

RBS (LSE: RBS) could therefore experience further declines in its valuation after a challenging six-month period. During that time it has fallen by 16%, with investors seemingly requiring a larger discount to its intrinsic value given the difficulties which may be ahead for the UK economy in particular.

Of course, buying shares that have fallen can lead to high returns in the long run. Do I think RBS could therefore be worth buying alongside a growth share which reported results on Monday?

Improving performance

The company in question is Georgia Healthcare (LSE: GHG). It is the largest integrated healthcare company in Georgia, with its revenue increasing by 13% in the first nine months of the year. The performance of the business was strong across all of its divisions, with its healthcare services business continuing to improve and its pharmacy and distribution business delivering an EBITDA margin of over 10% in the third quarter.

The company has continued to invest in staff training, while it has now completed all of its significant development projects except for its Mega Lab project. It is due to become operational this month as it seeks to improve its return on invested capital in each business.

Looking ahead, Georgia Healthcare is forecast to post a rise in earnings of 72% in the current year, followed by further growth of 51% next year. It trades on a price-to-earnings growth (PEG) ratio of 0.3, which suggests that after a successful third quarter it could offer upside potential.

Growth potential

As mentioned, the RBS share price has endured a difficult period. This could continue in the near term, with Brexit risks seemingly high. The UK is a key market for the business, and if confidence is low once Brexit occurs – even if there is a deal in place – it could lead to lower demand for the company’s range of services.

Of course, if the UK does experience a period of financial difficulty, it could be argued that RBS is not in a particularly strong position to overcome it. The government is still a majority shareholder in the bank, while its profitability has lagged some of its sector peers. Its financial strength and efficiency also appear to have some way to go before the bank is back to full health. Therefore, it could be impacted by a recession to a greater extent than some of its industry rivals.

That said, the stock appears to offer a wide margin of safety. It has a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 9.1, which suggests that it could have value investing appeal. Although it has fallen heavily in recent months, further challenges could be ahead in the short run. But with recovery potential, it could prove to be a sound turnaround option for the long run.

The post Is it time to pile into the RBS share price? appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

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Peter Stephens owns shares of Royal Bank of Scotland Group. The Motley Fool UK has no position in any of the shares mentioned. Views expressed on the companies mentioned in this article are those of the writer and therefore may differ from the official recommendations we make in our subscription services such as Share Advisor, Hidden Winners and Pro. Here at The Motley Fool we believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.

Looking ahead, further stock price growth could be on the horizon for the business. However, it’s not the only stock that could offer capital growth potential. Reporting on Wednesday was a smaller stock that may offer growth at a reasonable price.

Improving outlook

The company in question is Georgia Healthcare (LSE: GHG). It is the largest integrated healthcare services, pharmacy and medical insurance provider in Georgia. It released half-year results on Wednesday which showed that it was able to generate revenue growth of 13.1% versus the same period from the prior year. Net profit increased by 17.1%, with return on invested capital (ROIC) increasing by 1.2 percentage points to 10.2%.

The company was able to deliver double-digit revenue growth in both its healthcare services and pharmacy and distribution businesses. Last year’s significant investment in these areas seems to be paying off, with the financial prospects for the business continuing to improve.

In fact, Georgia Healthcare is expected to report a rise in earnings of 90% in the current year, followed by further growth of 47% next year. This puts it on a price-to-earnings growth (PEG) ratio of just 0.4, which suggests that it offers a wide margin of safety. As a result, it could offer capital growth potential for the long term.

Growth potential

Sirius Minerals may also offer investment appeal for the long term. The company has made progress in delivering offtake agreements so far in 2018, with it having agreed the supply of 5.7m tonnes of its POLY4 fertiliser per year. Although it still needs to sign further offtake agreements in order to deliver on its financing goals and its overall estimates, it seems to be making progress in doing so.

This has contributed to improved investor sentiment towards the company. However, it continues to be an uncertain place to invest. The company’s shares are more volatile than those of many of its resources peers – even though recent updates suggest that progress with the construction of its production facility is moving ahead as planned.

In the long run, the Sirius Minerals share price could move significantly higher. Even a price of 50p per share is unlikely to fully value the company, since its long-term estimates suggest that it could generate significant profit growth once production starts in 2021.

Certainly, volatility and risk may be high due in part to the potential for challenges regarding its financing this year. But with it making encouraging progress on its overall strategy, the company’s shares could prove to be undervalued at their current price level.

The post Why the Sirius Minerals share price could be set to surge to 50p+ appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

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Peter Stephens owns shares of Sirius Minerals. The Motley Fool UK has no position in any of the shares mentioned. Views expressed on the companies mentioned in this article are those of the writer and therefore may differ from the official recommendations we make in our subscription services such as Share Advisor, Hidden Winners and Pro. Here at The Motley Fool we believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.

This is a repeat performance of when I last covered the share back in August.

Today Georgia Healthcare declared that gross revenues boomed 75.1% during 2017, to 747.8m Georgian Lari (or GEL), a result that powered pre-tax profit 15.3% higher to GEL46.3m.

While sales at its Healthcare business again impressed, rising 7.8% last year to GEL265.4m, it was once again the Pharmaceuticals unit that stole the show — turnover here jumped 238.6% to GEL450.3m. This outstanding result was down to the acquisition of its Pharmadepot and GPC pharmacy chains last year.

The integrated healthcare provider’s Medical Insurance business was the only fly in the ointment. Revenues here dropped 12.7% in the 12 months to December, to GEL53.7m.

Medical marvel

The emerging markets of Eastern Europe can be played in a variety of ways, and Georgia Healthcare is arguably one of the best as strong economic growth in the country boosts healthcare demand. And the company is riding this train by investing heavily across its operations.

At its Healthcare division, Georgia Healthcare has embarked on a number of hospital redevelopment and modernisation programmes, which included the completion of two hospitals in the last year in the capital, Tbilisi. It has been splashing the cash over at its Pharmaceuticals arm too, with plans to raise the number of pharmacies to 300 from 250 presently, while it also has a raft of other plans to expand its market share (which currently stands at around 30%).

Reflecting its favourable earnings picture, City analysts expect the bottom line to explode 169% in 2018, and by an additional 29% last year. Consequently the London-headquartered firm can be considered a bona-fide bargain (provided investors look past a forward P/E ratio of 20.5 times and instead consider its corresponding sub-1 PEG readout of 0.1).

But these great growth forecasts and low valuation are not Georgia Healthcare’s only good points. A maiden dividend of 0.5p per share is currently predicted for 2018, and this is expected to sprint to 1.8p next year. Subsequent yields of 0.2% and 0.5% may not be impressive, but those seeking hot growth dividend shares may still want to give the company serious consideration.

Major merger

Renewi (LSE: RWI) is another cut-price growth share that has been updating investors in recent days.

On Monday the FTSE 250 firm advised: “We have continued to make good operational progress and overall trading across the group during the seasonally quieter second half has been in line with our expectations.”

Renewi added that, following the merger with Dutch competitor Van Gansewinkel a year ago, that its synergy and integration plans “continue to progress well” and that it remains “on track with the target synergies and delivering significant value accretion from the merger.”

It isn’t difficult to see earnings growth impressing at Renewi as strong economic growth in Europe boosts business, and the benefits of the aforementioned merger come to fruition. And my optimistic take is shared by the Square Mile, which is predicting profits expansion of 28% and 41% in the years to March 2018 and 2019 respectively.

A forward P/E ratio 19.8 times may not inspire, although a corresponding PEG reading of 0.7 certainly should. I reckon the Milton Keynes firm is another brilliant growth bargain to check out today.

The post 2 top value growth stocks I’d buy right now appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

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Royston Wild has no position in any of the shares mentioned. The Motley Fool UK has no position in any of the shares mentioned. Views expressed on the companies mentioned in this article are those of the writer and therefore may differ from the official recommendations we make in our subscription services such as Share Advisor, Hidden Winners and Pro. Here at The Motley Fool we believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.

Georgia Healthcare Group’s (LSE: GHG) share price was unchanged in Tuesday business despite the release of strong first-half figures.

The business — which provides a range of health-related care including hospital treatment, medical insurance and pharmacy services in Georgia — announced that revenues blasted 112.9% higher between January and June, to £371m. This forced pre-tax profit 44.9% higher, to £24.3m.

Thanks to the recent acquisitions of local pharmacy chains Pharmadepot and GPC, Georgia Healthcare saw the top line at its pharma division explode 624.5% in the first half, to £222.3m. Meanwhile, organic sales at its healthcare services arm continued to grow at double-digit rates, the firm noted. Total turnover here increased 11.5%, to £132.9m.

It was not great news across the board however, the medical mammoth enduring a 6% revenues fall at its medical insurance arm, to £27.4m. Still, Georgia Healthcare noted that it had begun to “make progress towards stabilising its earnings, following the expiration of its lossmaking contract with the Ministry of Defence in January 2017.”

In good health

Chief executive Nikoloz Gamkrelidze commented that the company “is in a strong period of growth and evolution,” and added that the firm “is in a significant business rollout phase in a number of key areas and, in the first half of 2017, has continued to make strong progress in integrating recent acquisitions and delivering key organic growth priorities.

“Over the next few years in our healthcare services business, we aim to achieve one-third market share by hospital beds, invest to close existing medical service gaps, and deliver a rapid launch of Polyclinics in the highly fragmented and under-penetrated outpatient market,” Gamkrelidze continued.

He added that at its pharma business it is “[aiming] to achieve more than 30% market share by revenue whilst improving the EBITDA margin to more than 8%.” The company now has 247 pharmacies spanning the length and breadth of Georgia.

The City certainly believes these plans should underpin perky profits growth, and expects earnings to rise 18% in 2017 and 46% next year.

While a forward P/E ratio of 24.6 times may look a tad hefty on paper, a PEG reading of 1.4 suggests that Georgia Healthcare is actually pretty attractively-priced given its immediate growth prospects.

Given the firm’s rising clout in a hot Eastern  European growth market, I reckon the business should be attracting serious glances from growth investors right now.

Jobs giant on the march

The number crunchers are pretty positive over the growth prospects of Hays (LSE: HAS) too and it is not difficult to see why.

While the recruitment giant has been witnessing  some weakness in its home territories of late — net like-for-like fees in the UK and Ireland dropped 5% in the 12 months to June 2017 — its broad geographic footprint should provide the platform for excellent profits growth in the years ahead. The business saw underlying net fees in Asia Pacific rise 11% last year, and by a similar percentage across its other overseas territories.

City brokers are expecting Hays to follow an anticipated 16% earnings rise in fiscal 2017 with an 8% advance next year. And this forward projection results in an undemanding P/E multiple of 15.9 times. I consider this to be brilliant value given the staffer’s stunning progress around the globe.

The post 2 great growth stocks trading much too cheaply appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

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Royston Wild has no position in any shares mentioned. The Motley Fool UK has no position in any of the shares mentioned. Views expressed on the companies mentioned in this article are those of the writer and therefore may differ from the official recommendations we make in our subscription services such as Share Advisor, Hidden Winners and Pro. Here at The Motley Fool we believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.

Improving performance

Georgia Healthcare Group (LSE: GHG) is a dominant company in its local market. In fact, it is the largest healthcare services provider, the third largest pharmaceutical retailer and wholesaler, and the largest medical insurance provider in the East European country. As such, its business is relatively well diversified between the three different divisions.

In the 2016 financial year, it was able to record strong results despite a swing to a loss in its medical insurance division. The loss came after a more challenging year, with one large corporate insurance contract having expired and not been renewed. Despite this, its overall performance was strong. Its sales and pre-tax profit increase by over 70%. Furthermore, it remains on target to deliver a more than doubling of its Healthcare Services revenue by 2018 compared to its 2015 level.

Growth outlook

The sharp rise in sales is set to be translated into rising earnings for the company. In 2017, Georgia Healthcare’s bottom line is forecast to rise by 37%, followed by 40% growth in 2018. Despite this strong growth rate, the company’s shares trade on a price-to-earnings growth (PEG) ratio of 0.8. Therefore, if they were to rise in price by 40% they would trade on a PEG ratio of just over 1, which would suggest fair value for money. Certainly, a higher valuation is possible, but a margin of safety may be required due to the company’s lack of geographical, rather than product, diversification.

As mentioned, the healthcare sector could offer strong growth prospects. As such, a number of other companies within the sector may also be worth buying at the present time. For example, Hikma Pharmaceuticals (LSE: HIK) is forecast to record a rise in its bottom line of 37% this year, followed by further growth of 29% next year. This puts it on a PEG ratio of just 0.7, which indicates that it offers superior value for money when compared to Georgia Healthcare.

Risk factor

In addition, Hikma may be a lower-risk business than its healthcare peer. It operates across the globe and so is not dependent on changes in regulations or trading conditions in one country. Hikma has a well-diversified product portfolio, with its focus on generics arguably providing a degree of consistency which some of its healthcare peers lack.

While the developing world may be emerging from a period of austerity, the cost of treatment for an ageing population may become difficult to afford. Therefore, generics may have a more pivotal role to play in future healthcare requirements, with a growing world population also likely to make them increasingly popular. As such, Hikma appears to be a sound buy, with a lower valuation and greater diversity making it a superior option to even the 40%-plus gains which seem to be on offer through Georgia Healthcare.

The post Why this growth stock could soar 40%+ within 2 years appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

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Peter Stephens has no position in any shares mentioned. The Motley Fool UK has recommended Hikma Pharmaceuticals. We Fools don't all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.

According to conventional financial theory, past performance is no guide to the future. In practice, though, it has long been recognised that price momentum exists in financial markets. Although researchers aren’t entirely certain sure why a stock’s past performance is a causative factor on future share price returns, the effect has been shown to be fairly consistent over time.

With this in mind, here are two momentum stocks that are certainly worth a closer look for small-cap investors.

Market leader

Georgia Healthcare Group (LSE: GHG) may be a small-cap stock, but as the name suggests, the company is a market leader in the fast-growing Georgian healthcare services market. And as the company is the largest healthcare services provider in the country, in terms of hospital bed capacity and medical insurance, it benefits from significant economies of scale, which gives it a cost advantage and throws up barriers to entry for competitors trying to enter the market.

This should mean that it would be difficult for rivals to disrupt the firm’s strong competitive position and wear down its market share and profitability. The company therefore benefits from a wide economic moat, a perk usually only reserved for larger businesses.

Shares in Georgia Healthcare Group are up 132% year-to-date, but I think further gains may be yet to come. The firm is fast-growing, with the shares currently trading at 21 times its expected 2017 earnings and it potentially paying its first dividend over the next few years.

FX tailwinds

Another stock with great price momentum is specialist engineering group Hill & Smith Holdings (LSE: HILS). The Infrastructure products supplier and galvanising services group is a major beneficiary of the weaker pound, thanks to its significant sales presence in the US and a large cost base in the UK.

It’s set to benefit from recent promises to boost infrastructure spending in the UK and US, as it’s a leading supplier of permanent and temporary road safety barriers. In the UK, the implementation of the Government’s Road Investment Strategy has already lifted demand for its temporary safety barrier, with further gains likely to come from the installation and maintenance of street lighting, road signage and traffic management systems.

Underlying revenue for the four months leading to 31 October 2016 rose 15% to £185m, with FX tailwinds contributing £9.1m of the gain, equivalent to 6% of its total revenues. Looking forward, City analysts expect the group to post a 24% increase in underlying EPS for the full year, with a further 8% gain in the following year. This gives the stock a forward P/E of 19.3 for 2016, which is due to fall to 18 by 2017. And although the stock has a current yield of just 1.7%, an expected dividend rise of 20% this year gives it an indicative forward dividend yield of 2% for next year.

The post 2 small-caps for momentum investors appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

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Jack Tang has no position in any shares mentioned. The Motley Fool UK has no position in any of the shares mentioned. We Fools don't all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.

The company — a leading provider of healthcare services in Georgia — saw sales leap 56% between January and June, to a record 174.2m Georgian lari (GEL). As a result net profit cantered to GEL45.2m from GEL13.3m a year earlier.

The results led chief executive Nikoloz Gamkrelidze to comment that “we remain well positioned to continue delivering a strong performance throughout 2016 and beyond, from both high levels of organic revenue growth as well as from the benefits of our key strategic priorities and recent acquisitions.”

Georgia Healthcare Group aims to double healthcare revenues by 2018, the healthcare play aiming to eventually control one third of the country’s hospital beds, and to rapidly improve its footprint in the outpatient market by launching ambulatory clinics.

And the Eastern European firm’s acquisition strategy saw it snap up GPC in May to bolster its position in the Georgian healthcare market. The company is one of the largest retail and wholesale pharmacy chains in the country and this makes the FTSE play one of the biggest drugs purchasers in the country.

I reckon Georgia Healthcare Group’s growing presence in a classic defensive segment, not to mention focus on a healthily-expanding overseas marketplace, makes it an exciting stock candidate for growth seekers.

Running aground?

Shares in shipping giant Clarkson (LSE: CKN) leapt 9% higher in Monday business after better-than-expected financials.

Clarkson saw revenues edge to £147.2m during January-June, up from £145.3m a year earlier. However, this couldn’t prevent underlying pre-tax profit from slipping to £21.8m in the period from £23.6m in the same 2015 duration.

Indeed, Clarkson advised that “the global shipping industry is experiencing the most challenging rate environment seen in many years which… has inevitably impacted the group’s performance for the first six months of 2016.”

The shipper’s ClarkSea Index, which assesses the earnings of main vessel types, slumped 30% in the half and accompanied the Baltic Dry Index touching fresh record lows.

And Clarkson warned that it expects conditions to remain difficult in the short term, “reflecting the ongoing supply demand imbalance with the resultant low levels of newbuilding contracts and a prevalence of spot business continuing to limit forward visibility of earnings.”

Clarkson remains in severe danger of prolonged bottom-line woe as ample shipping capacity and insipid demand weighs. And latest export data from China indicates that an upturn in global trade is a long way off — exports slumped 4.4% year-on-year in July on a dollar-denominated basis.

I reckon Clarkson remains a poor ‘contrarian’ share pick, particularly given its forward P/E rating of 34 times, a figure that fails to adequately reflect its mammoth risk profile.

The post These 2 FTSE giants are making the news! Should you buy? appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

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Royston Wild has no position in any shares mentioned. The Motley Fool UK has no position in any of the shares mentioned. We Fools don't all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.

Rio will still have to grapple with the low commodities prices that have battered the industry, but I see reason enough to believe it will cope better than competitors. Net debt at the end of June had been whittled down to $12.9bn, representing a sustainable gearing ratio of 23% that was significantly better than rivals such as BHP Billiton or Anglo American.

Furthermore, although prices for major commodities remain low, Rio posted $1.5bn in underlying earnings over the past six months due to low-cost-of-production assets that generated more than $3.2bn in cash. Even with dividends cut to maintain balance sheet health through the down part of the cycle, shareholders are still set to receive at least 85p this year for a yield of roughly 3.4%.

With a healthier balance sheet than competitors, a bevy of world-class assets and dividends to boot, I reckon Rio will remain an attractive Brexit-proof investment for years to come.

Georgia on my mind

Investors put off by Rio’s highly cyclical nature might do well to take a closer look at Georgia Healthcare Group (LSE: GHG). GHG is the largest insurer and private medical health provider in Georgia and has been well received by the City with share prices up 60% since their November IPO.

Bullish attitudes towards GHG focus on the company’s impressive growth from modernising healthcare services in the fast developing Caucasian nation. Revenue over the past year leapt 22.5% year-on-year with profits surging ahead a full 78%.

With shares valued at a pricey 25 times forward earnings, shareholders will need this level of growth to continue for some time. But for those who aren’t put off by foreign small-caps, GHG may be worth a closer look for its impressive growth prospects, high dividend potential and considerable margins.

Deb, debts, debts

For the truly risk-hungry investor there’s always the option of West African producer Tullow Oil (LSE: TLW). Tullow comes with significant upside in the form of significant low-cost-of-production assets but on the flip side has a cripplingly high level of debt. How this will play out should become clearer in the coming months as the company’s massive new TEN field off the coast of Ghana reaches first oil.

The good news for Tullow is that the completion of this project will mean a significant fall in capital expenditure as well as the addition of some 11,000 barrels per day of production this year and 30,000 barrels per day in 2017. With operating costs per barrel expected to be around $8, cash flow should pick up considerably.

The bad news is that net debt has now risen to $4.7bn for a dangerously high gearing ratio of 62%. Even with the significant cash flow to come from TEN, debt of this level means dividends are a truly distant prospect, which is reason enough for me to avoid a company in as highly cyclical an industry as oil & gas.

The post Three non-UK shares to cure your post-Brexit blues? appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

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Ian Pierce has no position in any shares mentioned. The Motley Fool UK has recommended Rio Tinto. We Fools don't all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.