Forget Bitcoin. I’d buy this 9% yield cheap FTSE 100 share to get rich

Bitcoin is hot news right now but cryptocurrency isn’t for everyone. I’d say that for most UK investors, picking up cheap FTSE 100 shares is a much better way to get rich.

Bitcoin remains a non-yield asset, like gold, for the most part. Holding it doesn’t create any compound growth. So instead I’ve picked out these super cheap FTSE 100 shares that offer a 9.2% dividend. 

If I wanted compound wealth — and trust me I do — then I’d be looking to utilise high-yield dividend income spread over many years. I think that’s on offer here.  

Imperial power

The Imperial Brands (LSE: IMB) share price has climbed 17% in the past month. That’s a tidy rise. But only because it hit a 16-year low on 6 November this year. 

My impression is that a turnaround for these cheap FTSE 100 shares is on the cards. 

Company accounts to 30 September 2020 showed Imperial Brands had actually improved revenues compared to 2019, up from £31.5bn to £32.5bn. Profits lifted too, from £1.69bn to £2.15bn.

The company has also forecast more profit growth in 2021, driven by rising annual tobacco sales. 

In May, Imperial Brands cut its dividend for the first time in 24 years. Bosses slashed the interim payout by 33% to 41.7p a share to help cut its £14bn of debt. That now seems like a sensible move, given the pandemic. 

And IMB has retained its progressive dividend policy from this level. That means it will seek to pay an ever higher proportion of profits to shareholders each year. 

Directing the play

I also like to see directors buying stock in their own companies. On 18 November, non-exec director Bob Kunze-Concewitz hoovered up 15,000 IMB shares for £227,623. That’s some expression of confidence and an indication he too believes these are cheap FTSE 100 shares. This kind of action is considered what they call ‘material’, so directors have to declare it to the market.

With the torrid share price drops of  2020 seeming to be over for now, these may not be cheap FTSE 100 shares for very much longer, I’d wager.

Cheap FTSE 100 shares win

At a P/E ratio of just 5.2, I believe there’s some pretty stunning long-term value on offer here. And there’s a particular reason I keep banging on about buying cheap FTSE 100 shares at attractive valuations. 

I believe this value investing principle can make me the best profits of my life. 

Not only can I reinvest the whopping 9.2% dividend yield to see long-term compound growth. I know the dividends will get progressively larger over time. I also make portfolio gains from cheap FTSE 100 shares when prices start to rise. 

Investing wizard John Neff made fortunes for Vanguard investors by sticking to this principle. His comments have stuck with me since I first read them: “Buy stocks that look bad to less careful investors and hang on until their real value is recognised.”