Although the FTSE 100 faces risks from the prospect of a global trade war, a number of its members are expected to post strong earnings growth in the current year.
Furthermore, they could continue to report improving levels of profitability over the coming years as they implement their strategies.
As such, now could be the right time to buy them while they potentially trade on lower valuations due to increasing risk aversion among investors.
With that in mind, here are two FTSE 100 growth shares that could deliver impressive total returns in the long run.
Reckitt Benckiser Consumer goods company Reckitt Benckiser (LSE: RB) is forecast to deliver earnings growth of 9% in the current year. It has a solid track record of net profit growth, with its bottom line having increased in each of the last five years.
This trend could continue over the long run, with demand for a variety of consumer goods forecast to rise across the emerging world. This could provide the company with a tailwind that catalyses its top and bottom lines.
Reckitt Benckiser’s restructuring appears to have improved the company’s efficiency, while acquisitions over recent years have diversified its operations yet further.
With the stock trading on a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 17, it appears to offer good value for money relative to its historic average. As such, now could be the right time to buy a slice of the business, with it seeming to offer a wider margin of safety than many of its global consumer goods peers.
Tesco (LON:TSCO) While Reckitt Benckiser has sought to expand its geographical reach into emerging markets, Tesco (LSE: TSCO) has refocused on its core UK operations in recent years. This has largely been successful, with the business becoming more competitive in what is a crowded UK supermarket segment.
Evidence of this can be seen in its improving customer satisfaction rates, as well as rising like-for-like sales growth over the last few years. With the company expecting to deliver a rising operating margin over the medium term, its financial outlook is relatively upbeat.
In fact, Tesco is forecast to post a rise in earnings of 20% in the current year. Since the stock trades on a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of under 16, it seems to offer good value for money. This suggests that it may be able to record improving share price performance.
Of course, the UK retail sector faces an uncertain period. Consumer confidence is weak, economic risks are high and the political outlook is highly changeable. But with Tesco having an improving financial outlook and a margin of safety, it may be able to post total returns that are ahead of the FTSE 100. As such, now could be a good time to buy it, despite the uncertain economic outlook.
Peter Stephens owns shares of Reckitt Benckiser and Tesco. The Motley Fool UK has no position in any of the shares mentioned. Views expressed on the companies mentioned in this article are those of the writer and therefore may differ from the official recommendations we make in our subscription services such as Share Advisor, Hidden Winners and Pro. Here at The Motley Fool we believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.
Motley Fool UK 2019