Are you looking to invest £5,000, or any other amount, today? If so, buying cheap FTSE 100 UK shares could be the best way to invest and grow your hard-earned money over the long run.
With that in mind, here are two FTSE 100 income and growth stocks that may help you grow your financial nest egg in the years ahead.
UK shares to buy
Asset manager M&G (LSE: MNG) recently reported a 57% drop in first-half income, due to the coronavirus crisis. However, after excluding the one-off factors that impacted the group’s bottom line during the first six months of 2020, profit was almost unchanged year-on-year.
What’s more, the company reported an increase in operating earnings from its key asset management activities.
This trading update indicates the company is coping well in the crisis. It also suggests the stock is undervalued at current levels. It’s fallen nearly 30% year-to-date, underperforming many other UK shares. The recent positive trading update from the firm seems to imply this decline is unwarranted.
The company has also reconfirmed its dividend commitment for the year. At current levels, it supports a dividend yield of 10%. That’s compared to the market average of around 4%.
Considering all of the above, it appears shares in M&G offer a wide margin of safety at current levels. As such, now could be an excellent time to buy the stock as part of a well-diversified portfolio. It may yield high total returns for investors in the years ahead as the economic recovery gets underway.
United Utilities Group
Billionaire investor Warren Buffett once described utility companies as a great way to “stay real rich.” With this in mind, some of the best UK share buys to grow wealth could be utility stocks. United Utilities (LSE: UU) is a fantastic example.
Over the past decade, the stock has produced an average annual return of the 8% for investors. That’s nearly double the FTSE 100 average over the same period.
The company is extremely defensive, which makes it attractive in the current economic environment. Consumers will always need access to water and wastewater services, even in recessions. United Utilities is one of the few UK shares that provide these services.
Its size and scale allows the group to earn attractive profit margins. These support the company’s dividend yield which currently stands at 4.8%, slightly above the wider FTSE 100 average. The stock also has a track record of above-inflation dividend increases. Analysts expect this trend to continue for the next few years, at least.
As such, if you have £5,000, or any other amount, to invest today, buying United Utilities as part of a diversified portfolio may be a good option. The stock provides a market-beating dividend yield and has the potential to produce predictable total returns in the long run.