Where have I been? This FTSE 100 growth stock’s leaving the index in the dust!

Growth continues to propel this stunning FTSE 100 market mover and the outlook’s positive for more advances in the years ahead.

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Can the FTSE 100 make investors rich? Many people probably write it off as a chugging dividend payer full of stodgy but well-established businesses.

The fast action is in the US market, some would argue, where mighty tech companies are defying the laws of valuation and rocketing higher without a care in the world.

Home-grown outperformers

However, the Footsie has within its ranks some powerful market movers that have been leaving the performance of the overall index far behind.

Should you invest £1,000 in Intercontinental Hotels Group Plc right now?

When investing expert Mark Rogers has a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the flagship Motley Fool Share Advisor newsletter he has run for nearly a decade has provided thousands of paying members with top stock recommendations from the UK and US markets. And right now, Mark thinks there are 6 standout stocks that investors should consider buying. Want to see if Intercontinental Hotels Group Plc made the list?

See the 6 stocks

To my shame, I’ve been asleep at the wheel with one of them. But had I been more alert, this growing enterprise could have been boosting my portfolio.

It’s time to correct that error of omission and get focused on this growth darling with a view to getting in on the action. The business in question is InterContinental Hotels Group (LSE: IHG).

Who’d have thought it? I blind-sided myself by assuming the hotel operator was a cyclical leaf blowing in the winds of macro-economic change. Well, it is in a cyclical sector, of course, but that’s not the whole story. This juggernaut’s been expanding, and fast!

Just look at the chart for a summary of the growth story here.

Created with Highcharts 11.4.3InterContinental Hotels Group Plc PriceZoom1M3M6MYTD1Y5Y10YALLwww.fool.co.uk

If I’d been clever enough to have invested £5,000 in the shares 10 years ago, I’d now have about £19,350 with dividends on top of that.

Had I bunged that £5k into InterContinental Hotels Group shares 20 years ago, they’d now be worth around £60,500 plus all the dividends along the way.

That contrasts with the performance of the overall FTSE 100, which would have grown my money to a mere £9,850, plus dividends, over the past two decades.

More relentless progress

Is it too late to get involved with InterContinental Hotels Group shares? I don’t think so. Today’s third-quarter trading update shows more steady progress and a continuation of the firm’s growth strategy.

In the nine months to the end of September, revenue per available room (RevPAR) increased by 1.5% year on year. Meanwhile, in a measure of the size of this beast of a business, the company opened 17,500 rooms across 98 hotels in the period, which is “well over double the same period last year”.

The enterprise now operates all over the world, but that does add risks. For example, the company’s in places like China and other territories that may not share the UK’s general world view. So I see the company as vulnerable to the effects of potential geo-political tensions and economic shocks.

On top of that, there are cyclical uncertainties in the sector — a half-decent world recession would almost certainly cause a loss of earnings and a falling share price.

Nevertheless, with the rise and rise of the world’s affluent and financially sorted class of people, I reckon demand for the firm’s multiple hotel brands will likely continue to grow.

Meanwhile, InterContinental Hotel Group’s well-proven growth strategy may help it deliver further progress for shareholders over the coming years. So I’m digging in with deeper research now with a view to picking up a few of the shares to hold long term.

But here’s another bargain investment that looks absurdly dirt-cheap:

Like buying £1 for 31p

This seems ridiculous, but we almost never see shares looking this cheap. Yet this Share Advisor pick has a price/book ratio of 0.31. In plain English, this means that investors effectively get in on a business that holds £1 of assets for every 31p they invest!

Of course, this is the stock market where money is always at risk — these valuations can change and there are no guarantees. But some risks are a LOT more interesting than others, and at The Motley Fool we believe this company is amongst them.

What’s more, it currently boasts a stellar dividend yield of around 10%, and right now it’s possible for investors to jump aboard at near-historic lows. Want to get the name for yourself?

See the full investment case

Should you invest, the value of your investment may rise or fall and your capital is at risk. Before investing, your individual circumstances should be assessed. Consider taking independent financial advice.

Kevin Godbold has no position in any of the shares mentioned. The Motley Fool UK has recommended InterContinental Hotels Group Plc. 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.

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