Four stocks to snap up on weakness

Professional investor Julian Chillingworth believes the markets have a way to fall yet. But there are still opportunities to buy on weakness. Here, he picks four stocks to watch.

Each week, a professional investor tells MoneyWeek where he'd put his money now. This week: Julian Chillingworth, chief investment officer and manager of the Rathbone Income and Growth fund.

It's been an extraordinary few weeks for finance, filled with collapses, bail-outs and takeovers. We doubt that government-sponsored initiatives will draw a line under the credit crisis, so the risk of serious capital erosion is high. That's why we are staying defensively positioned in investments that can show low levels of gearing, strong balance sheets, cash generation and visibility of earnings. No bell will ring when the market bottoms, but arguably we have another downward leg to endure as the market takes account of the burden on the US taxpayer from the bail-outs and its impact on the real economy. Markets capitulate when the economic environment is at its bleakest this is now most probable in 2009 for UK investors. Our cash levels remain high, and trading is muted. However, we are watching the following stocks for suitable entry points.

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