The coronavirus-inspired market crash has pushed some FTSE 100 shares down to levels not seen since the financial crisis. Investors shouldn’t ignore this opportunity.
Those with a long-term time horizon should make the most of this chance to snap up some high-quality blue-chips at discount prices.
With that in mind, here are two FTSE 100 shares that look to be on offer right now.
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FTSE 100 dividend champion
Shares in FTSE 100 dividend champion Legal & General (LSE: LGEN) plunged last week. The stock fell after regulators across Europe threatened to force insurance companies to cut their dividends in order to conserve capital.
Legal has since come out to say it will pay its final dividend for 2019, despite this threat.
That’s good news for income investors. However, the company has also said it will continue to monitor events. That suggests if the situation deteriorates further, Legal could cut its payout.
Even if the company does take this drastic action, the stock could be a great addition to your portfolio at current levels. It’s dealing at a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of just 5, which implies the shares offer a wide margin of safety at current levels.
What’s more, the stock offers a yield of nearly 12%. This implies that if L&G cuts its payout, when the distribution is restored (if it’s restored at current levels), investors could be in line for a double-digit dividend yield.
All in all, the risk/reward of owning shares in Legal right now looks favourable.
Global giant
Another FTSE 100 share that might be worth considering for your portfolio today is global defence contractor BAE Systems (LSE: BA).
Last week, BAE announced it’s suspending its dividend for the foreseeable future. This was undoubtedly a shock for income investors, but it’s understandable. The coronavirus outbreak has significantly disrupted BAE’s operations, and the company needs to preserve liquidity.
The good news is, when the outbreak is over, BAE should make a healthy recovery. The global defence market is only growing, and BAE is one of the world’s largest defence contractors.
To make sure it can return to business as usual as soon as possible, the company says it’s working closely with its suppliers to help them through this tough time.
There’s also a chance the business could emerge from this crisis stronger. BAE has $2.5bn of liquidity to keep the lights on, under a revolving credit facility that’s in place until 2024.
This should help the business weather the storm. The company’s competitors might not be so lucky. If competitors start to collapse, BAE might be able to fill the gap, boosting growth in the long run.
As such, now could be an excellent time for long-term investors to snap up a share of this global champion at a discount price.
The shares are currently trading at a P/E of just 10.4, that’s compared to its long run average of around 15. When the dividend is restored, investors could be in line for a total yield of 4.6%. That’s assuming BAE restarts its dividend at last year’s level.
