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Picking the right shares to buy after a national Budget can be quite daunting. But now that it’s been almost two weeks since Chancellor John Healey made his speech, the market has had plenty of time to digest the changes and potential impacts.
And looking at the latest data from AJ Bell, it seems that there are two UK shares getting a lot of attention from retail investors: Standard Life (LSE:SDLF) and Lloyds (LSE:LLOY).
So why are these shares now near the top of investors’ Buy lists? And should I also be considering them for my portfolio?
A Budget that could have been worse
The fact that Lloyds remains among the most popular shares following the Budget might sound surprising. After all, Healey announced an increase in the levy on banking profits, rising from 3% to 6% between January 2027 and April 2028.
Despite this tax hike, the entire UK banking sector seemingly rallied, with Lloyds included. Why? Because investors had expected the tax increase to be far more severe.
What about Standard Life? Here, the Budget had far less of a direct impact. However, with tax increases on savings accounts outside an ISA, the company could actually benefit from a subtle-but-potentially impactful increase in demand for tax-efficient pension products.
So should I join in the buying spree?
Is Lloyds a good investment?
Beyond the impact of the Budget, Lloyds’ latest third-quarter results were genuinely solid. Net interest income continued to climb, now rising by 10% year on year over the first nine months of 2026. And the all-important return on tangible equity hit an impressive 17.9%, beating the group’s own target of 16%.
However, when it came to outlook, here the bank was a bit less impressive. Competition among mortgage lenders is on the rise. And at the same time, fintech and digital banks such as Monzo and Revolut are increasingly making it harder to attract fresh deposits from customers.
Yet with Lloyds’ shares slipping in recent weeks, these headwinds might now be priced in. And therefore I’m tempted to take a much deeper dive.
What about Standard Life?
Standard Life’s latest results tell a different story. Operating cash generation grew 6% in the first half of 2026, and management expects this mid-single-digit growth to continue throughout the rest of the year.
That suggests the group’s on track to continue generating a slow and steady stream of expanding cash flows to fund its chunky 5.9% dividend yield. However, the bigger prize is the group’s acquisition of Aegon UK.
While the takeover hasn’t finalised yet, if successful, Standard Life would become one of the UK’s largest pension and savings enterprise. That means even more cash generation could be around the corner, making the insurance giant a potentially even more lucrative source of passive income next year.
However, it’s worth pointing out that the market has seemingly already priced in the benefits of this takeover. And that could be a problem if the takeover fails to get the green light from regulators. Even more so considering the Competition & Markets Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority are rumoured to be tracking the deal closely.
With that in mind, I think Lloyds looks like the more interesting play to consider today. But Standard Life’s nevertheless a business I’m also watching closely.
Should you invest £5,000 in Lloyds Banking Group Plc right now?
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And right now, Mark thinks there are 6 standout stocks that investors should consider buying. Want to see if Lloyds Banking Group Plc made the list?
Zaven Boyrazian does not hold any positions in the companies mentioned.
This story originally appeared on Motley Fool
