The famous Warren Buffett investing quote “be greedy when others are fearful” rings true for me at the moment. The FTSE 100 has been sliding for a while, which means a lot of stocks look good value. Here are three stocks that I’ve bought recently.
First up is housebuilder Persimmon (LSE: PSN). The stock has been falling since 2021, down 69% in total, and I can now buy shares for the cheapest they’ve been for 10 years.
In fairness, it’s no surprise the stock has been tanking. The housing market generally is in for a tough time with the stamp duty holiday ending, rising interest rates and a cost-of-living crisis. The firm’s Q1 housing completions were down 42%.
But housing is a cyclical industry. The last time it crashed, Persimmon fell 84%, then went on to 12-bag in the years following. Such is the advantage of buying in when others are panicking.
I’m not 100% sure we’re at the bottom here, but I can’t see Persimmon falling much further. The firm has no debt, £4bn in assets, and a price-to-book ratio of less than one. It trades at only five times earnings as well. It looks like pretty good value to me.
Before the hype takes off
At the other end of the spectrum is US tech giant Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL), a firm that’s definitely not looking that cheap. The iPhone manufacturer rose to new highs recently and surpassed a $3trn market value.
So, why buy in here? Well, the company just keeps making its shareholders money. The shares are up 300% in the last five years, and far more than that going further back. It’s also been paying a dividend since 2012.
There’s a growth story here too. The firm’s latest product, a VR headset, will start being sold in early 2024. So, I see now as a good time to open a position before the hype takes off.
Best of the FTSE 100?
The final stock I bought recently was insurance firm Aviva (LSE: AV). This is another company that has fallen along with the FTSE 100 and is now 18% cheaper than earlier in the year.
This cheaper price has pushed the yield up, with an 8.13% dividend looking tantalising. It’s over double the FTSE 100 average and cover of 1.6 times earnings seems sustainable to me.
With insurance being a defensive industry, I’d expect Aviva to weather short-term economic issues. Even better, under new CEO Amanda Blanc, the firm is seeing strong growth in its products. With all the good news, I’m not sure the price will stay this low for long.
I‘ve wanted to increase my exposure to solid, dividend-paying income shares. And personally, I think this might be the best the FTSE 100 has to offer right now.
