3 Stock Picks From Top Pros: BG Group plc (BG), Aggreko plc (AGK) and More

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However, it’s the underlying value of BG’s assets — including huge reserves in the Santos Basin off Brazil — that particularly excites Sheppard and makes BG one of the top holdings in his portfolio with a weighting of around 6%. In a recent “Stocks for 2013” feature in the Manchester Evening News, Sheppard said:

[BG] now trades at a substantial discount to net asset value, despite a truly world-class portfolio… While unlocking this value organically may take time, we would not be surprised to see mergers and acquisitions play a big role this year, particularly given the predatory nature of the sector.

Analysts reckon BG’s assets could be worth as much as 1,900 pence per share, which puts the shares at a discount of 40% — certainly wide enough to attract a bidder.

Full power ahead
My Expert Eight don’t “churn” their portfolios a great deal, so my ears always prick up when I hear that one of these pros has made an investment in a new company. That’s just happened in the case of Buxton, who told us in his January fund update:

We initiated a position in Aggreko. The company designs and rents out specialized power generation and air conditioning equipment. The CEO recently [Dec. 17] stated its revenue guidance for 2013 was overoptimistic, and the resulting share price fall created an attractive entry point for long-term investors. It is a high-quality well-managed business that is strongly positioned in a structural growth market.

The shares rallied over Christmas and through January but have since fallen back, closing on Friday at 1,680 pence. Buxton’s use of the phrase “initiated a position” suggests he could be in the market to buy more Aggreko shares.

Finally, if you’re looking for other growth opportunities among the FTSE’s larger companies, you may wish to read this exclusive in-depth report.

You see, the blue chip in this report has lifted its earnings per share by 46% since 2009, owns subsidiaries that might carry “considerable value” not reflected within the shares, and has just been declared “The Motley Fool’s Top Growth Stock for 2013.”

The article 3 Stock Picks From Top Pros originally appeared on Fool.com and is written by G. A. Chester.

G.A. Chester does not own shares in any of the companies mentioned in this article, but does own shares in “The Motley Fool’s Top Growth Stock For 2013.” The Motley Fool owns shares in Standard Chartered.

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