Up 30% in April but still at a 10 year low! Is this the best stock to buy in May?
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Quality assurance provider EUR group (LSE: ITRK) was the best stock to buy in April, hindsight tells us. I didn’t see that. I’ve lost interest in FTSE 100 company as its shares have struggled for years. Suddenly, they are up more than 30% per month. Does that make it the best stock to buy in May?
As a rule, I would like to answer that question in the negative. Usually, that kind of spike is in response to a single piece of news or a set of positive results, and it often reveals profit takers. But could the EUR be different?
As I suspected, Intertek was responding to a positive Q1 trading update on April 14th. This showed revenue grew by 6.7%, which reassured investors after the soft results for 2025, published in March. Shares jumped 12% on the day.
Forget Intertek, look London Stock Exchange Group
But this was not the only thing driving the EUR. The deal was extended later in the month, after Swedish private equity firm EQT made several bids for the company, starting at $11.2bn.
Actually, I’m sorry, I’ll stop there. I never buy shares with the talk of taking money. If the deal goes through, the opportunity is gone. If it fails, new investors can pick up the pace as the stock pulls back.
But another FTSE 100 share had a good April, and I think this one should be considered today. Its name? Data analysis specialist London Stock Exchange Group (LSE: LSEG). It jumped 17% last month, smashing the overall FTSE 100, which rose 1.4%.
I can’t say for sure that LSEG, as it is often called (or any other stock), is the best buy right now. But it posted a positive update for Q1, with total revenue up 9.8% year-on-year to a record £2.4bn. That’s cool, but not surprising. Earnings per share have been racing lately.
Earnings per share keep rising
- 2025: EPS increased by 14.4% to £3.29.
- 2024: EPS up 10.1% to £2.88.
- 2024: EPS increased by 8.65% to £2.61.
Like many data stocks, London Stock Exchange Group’s shares sank in February on fears that artificial intelligence (AI) could offer its customers the same services at a reduced price. Investors calmed down. Why? While AI is smart, we are also learning its limitations. LSEG data can be trusted, while AI makes mistakes. The data provider is also turning AI to its advantage, embedding it in its systems to provide better service to more customers.
I think the London Stock Exchange Group can build on last month’s success, and maintain its momentum. It’s not as cheap as it used to be, with a price-to-earnings ratio of just under 23. That’s low on its scale though. Over the past ten years, the group’s P/E ranged from 35-74. Today, it looks like a bargain.
Despite the April hop, the London Stock Exchange Group’s share price is down 15% over the past 12 months, so I think there’s still a compelling long-term opportunity to consider here. For investors to enjoy holding for a long time, and not worry too much about AI.
