Today I’m looking at three FTSE 100 (INDEXFTSE: UKX) favourites offering splendid growth and income potential.
Flying high
With demand for cheap airline seats continuing to soar, I reckon easyJet (LSE: EZJ) is one of the hottest stocks out there for those seeking splendid long-term returns.
The Luton flyer saw passenger numbers canter 6.1% higher in April, to 6.37m, as sales to both holidaymakers and business travellers continued to climb. And I expect traveller numbers on easyJet’s planes to keep rising as the business expands the number of routes it operates across the continent.
This view is shared by the Square Mile, and easyJet is anticipated to enjoy earnings rises of 3% and 15% in the periods to September 2016 and 2017, respectively. Consequently the carrier boasts ultra-low P/E ratings of 9.9 times and 8.6 times for these years.
And income seekers will no doubt be impressed by easyJet’s dividend yields — figures of 4.6% for this year and 5.2% for 2017 comfortably trump the 3.5% FTSE 100 average.
Tobacco titan
There’s no doubt that the tobacco industry faces a titanic task to keep sales heading higher as legislators exacerbate already-deteriorating social attitudes towards smoking.
A high court ruling in London just yesterday means that the likes of British American Tobacco (LSE: BATS) will have to distribute their products in plain, logo-free cartons in the UK from today. Many other countries are considering introducing similar legislation.
Still, I believe the stunning popularity of labels such as Lucky Strike and Dunhill with smokers across the globe should enable British American Tobacco to keep the top line growing in the coming years — sales of these ‘Global Drive Brands’ roared ahead 10.5% between January and March.
With British American Tobacco also upping its assault on the fast-growing e-cigarette segment, the City expects earnings to advance 18% in 2016 and 8% in 2017. Consequently a slightly-toppy P/E multiple of 18.1 times for the current period slips to just 16.7 times for 2017.
And British American Tobacco’s strong earnings outlook is expected to keep dividends marching higher too, prompting juicy yields of 3.9% for 2016 and 4.2% for next year.
A financial favourite
I reckon that Legal & General (LSE: LGEN) is a great bet to deliver robust shareholder returns in the years ahead as it bolsters its presence in key geographies.
The company — whose operations are centred in the UK, US and Asia — continues to expand its distribution network across these regions. And Legal & General is also bolstering its presence in hot growth segments across the world, the firm entering the US and European pension risk transfer markets in 2015, for example.
The number crunchers expect earnings to stomp 7% higher in both 2016 and 2017, meaning that Legal & General deals on brilliant P/E ratings of 10.5 times and 9.7 times for these years.
And the insurance giant’s dividend outlook undergirds its reputation as a stunning pick for value chasers — Legal & General sports market-mashing yields of 6.6% and 7.1% for 2016 and 2017.
