Time is running out for Stocks and Shares ISA investors to buy UK shares for this tax year. The 5 April deadline for individuals to max out their £20,000 annual tax-free allowance is fast approaching. Any amount that isn’t used can’t be rolled over to future years.
Of course, investors don’t need to use any cash they park in their ISA right away. But there are plenty of quality British stocks out there which I think are great buys right now.
Here are a few UK shares that have caught my attention because of their enormous dividend yields. Should I buy them for my ISA before next week’s deadline? Actually, I’d only buy one of them.
Office tension
The 5% forward dividend at British Land (LSE: BLND) looks mighty tempting right now. It’s a reading which smashes the broader 3.5% average for UK shares to smithereens. But I worry about the long-term impact which e-commerce growth will have on demand for its retail properties. Not to mention the consequences that the rising popularity of home working will have on occupancy rates at its offices.
Comments from Catherine McGuinness, policy chairperson at the City of London Corporation, caught my attention today. She suggests that companies expect people to still come into their offices several times a week after Covid-19 has passed. What’s more, McGuinness said that planning applications indicate “a real surge of interest in getting office space in the City.” It raises the question of whether demand will in fact remain broadly stable.
We’re still at the early stages of realising what post-pandemic workplaces will look like. The exodus of people from offices might not be a long-term phenomenon. And particularly if companies deem that flexible working creates more problems than they solve.
Still, there’s a wealth of data showing companies planning to — or are already taking steps to — reduce their office footprints. And I’m afraid this, combined with the threat posed to its retail spaces by online shopping, makes British Land a risk too far for me right now.
A better UK property share
I’d be much happier to invest in LondonMetric Property (LSE: LMP) right now. Okay, this UK property share also has exposure to retail parks and offices. But the business generates the lion’s share of profits from national and regional distribution hubs, a sector which is expected to undergo huge growth in the years ahead as e-commerce continues to grow. Some of LondonMetric’s blue-chip customers include Amazon, Primark, Tesco and DHL.
I’m also encouraged by steps the business is taking to reshape its property portfolio. That’s even though property acquisitions always carry a layer of risk and that acquirers like LondonMetric Property can pay over the odds. This month, the company sold a number of retail properties and used the funds to purchase a data centre and a warehousing facility in Milton Keynes.
I’m backing this UK share to deliver meaty long-term growth. That’s even though the possible introduction of an online sales tax could damage the broader logistics and warehousing industry. But a 4.3% dividend yield does whet my appetite for income.
