Not every investor wants to actively monitor the markets and find hidden gems. It can be easier to invest stocks to buy and hold from companies that have vast enterprises, lower risk and plenty of growth potential.
Buying stocks with the intent of holding onto them forever means ignoring the short-term noise and focusing on the long-term opportunities. This strategy can reward investors while allowing them to save time instead of trying to make precise entries and exits into various assets.
The stock market has a history of helping long-term investors get closer to their financial goals. These three stocks to buy and hold look like enticing opportunities that you may never have to sell.
Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL)
Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG, NASDAQ:GOOGL) is the largest online advertising platform. Many people rely on Google and YouTube to find information. Advertisers use the traction of both search engines to get in front of potential customers.
Advertising contributes to the majority of Alphabet’s total revenue. The company generated $76.7 billion in revenue during the third quarter which was an 11% year-over-year increase. Google’s advertising revenue came in at $59.6 billion, which was 77.7% of the company’s total revenue.
Alphabet has successfully diversified into cloud computing which now makes up more than 10% of the company’s total revenue. Cloud computing is growing at a faster pace than advertising revenue and can improve the company’s growth rates and profitability in the years ahead.
Alphabet’s dominance across search and advertising suggest that it is among long-term stocks to buy and hold. It’s a core component of many mutual funds and has delivered steady gains for investors. The stock has gained 57% year-to-date and is up by 164% over the past five years.
Amazon (AMZN)
Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) stock is another keeper due to its dominance in e-commerce. The tech giant has the largest market cap among e-commerce stocks, and it’s feasible to see the company report $1 trillion in annual revenue within 5 to 10 years.
Amazon recently delivered a 13% year-over-year sales growth which brought revenue to $143.1 billion for the third quarter. Just like Alphabet, Amazon has also adapted to cloud computing and offers Amazon Web Services. AWS sales increased by 12% year-over-year to reach $23.1 billion.
After a disappointing 2022 that wiped out a few years of gains, Amazon stock is back in action and has gained 78% year-to-date. Shares trade at a 40-forward P/E ratio.
Amazon doesn’t present the same hyper-growth opportunity it did several years ago. However, the company can still grow at a respectable pace and has the financial flexibility to offer a dividend when it matures. Amazon’s advertising segment can fuel more growth. It was one of the company’s highlights in 2023, and the new Prime Video ads set to debut on January 29th can strengthen that business segment.
Visa (V)
People will always use credit and debit cards to buy goods and services. These cards are more convenient than pulling out your wallet and looking for change. For online transactions, credit and debit cards are even more convenient.
Visa (NYSE:V) makes money on each transaction that comes from one of its cards. Visa has perfected the art of selling shovels during a gold rush and has become the largest credit card issuer by market cap. The stock’s market cap exceeds $500 billion while the P/E ratio sits at 31. Investors get to enjoy a small 0.80% dividend yield, but that’s not why people buy Visa stock.
The company regularly reports high-profit margins that exceed 50%. Revenue and earnings growth are also good, as the company generated double-digit year-over-year growth rates for both metrics in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2023. Net income growth accelerated in the fiscal fourth quarter to reach 19% year-over-year growth compared to full-year growth of 15% year-over-year.
That combination has resulted in a 25% year-to-date gain. Shares have almost doubled over the past five years.
On the date of publication, Marc Guberti did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.