In this article, we discuss the 5 safe stocks to invest in for the long-term in 2022. If you want to read our comprehensive analysis of these stocks and the current market situation, go directly to 10 Safe Stocks To Invest in For The Long-Term in 2022.
5. The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 70
The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) is a dividend aristocrat, and has raised its dividend payments to shareholders for 60 consecutive years. This is testament to the firm’s market dominance and financial stability over the course of many decades. Its Coca Cola beverage is a household product all around the globe. Warren Buffett, arguably the world’s most famous and successful investor, has been building his position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) for decades, and is also the top shareholder of the firm in the fourth quarter with 400 million shares valued at $23.68 billion. In total, 70 hedge funds were long on the company shares during the fourth quarter, up from 61 hedge funds a quarter ago.
In the fourth quarter, The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) reported an EPS of $0.45, exceeding consensus estimates by $0.04. Quarterly revenue was up 10.08% year-on-year, coming in at $9.47 billion and outperforming analysts’ estimates by $579.32 million.
Evercore ISI analyst Robert Ottenstein in February maintained an ‘Outperform’ rating on The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) shares, and increased the price target to $70 from $63. Ottenstein sees the beverage-maker improving its long-term outlook and business model, and notes potential for continued sales growth of 5-6%, steady dividend increases and share buyback programs. The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) announced in February that it expects to resume its share repurchases in 2022 with a net repurchase of approximately $500 million.
4. Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 83
Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) provides healthcare and pharmaceutical products around the globe. It ranks as a popular dividend aristocrat which has grown its dividend payments for 59 years in a row.
On March 2, analyst Geoff Meacham of BofA reinstated coverage of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) with a ‘Neutral’ rating and a price target of $185. Given the current macro and geopolitical environment, he likes the firm’s ‘safe haven’ status, and also remains bullish on its near-term growth prospects.
Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) posted an EPS of $2.13 for the fourth quarter, exceeding estimates by $0.01. Revenue for Q4 was recorded at $24.80 billion, signalling a boost of 10.36% year-on-year. As of April 4, Johnson & Johnson’s (NYSE:JNJ) share price has jumped 9.03% in the last 12 months, and 11.91% in the last 6 months.
Out of all the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey, 83 reported holding positions in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) at the end of the fourth quarter, with combined stakes worth $7.38 billion. Fundsmith LLP was the top shareholder in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) during the fourth quarter, with a stake consisting of 7.21 million shares valued $1.23 billion.
Distillate Capital, an investment firm, talked about many stocks in its Q2 2021 investor letter, and Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) was one of them. The fund said:
“The largest additions in the rebalance, Johnson & Johnson was around 50 and 40 basis points incrementally. J&J underperformed in the quarter while its normalized free cash flows held steady and so its position size was topped off to match the stable cash flows.”
3. Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 158
Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) is the parent company of Google and its related platforms. With a market cap of $1.86 trillion, it is one of the most successful companies in the world. In late March, Times Magazine released its list of ‘100 Most Influential Companies In The World’ for 2022, and not surprisingly Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) ranked among the list.
On March 10, Deutsche Bank analyst Ben Black initiated coverage of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) with a ‘Buy’ rating and a price target of $3,150. He noted that the company is a structural winner from the secular trend of commerce and services shifting from physical venues to digital store mediums, and sees the firm perfectly positioned to benefit from the growing importance of e-commerce within global retail.
For the fourth quarter, Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) posted revenue of $75.33 billion, which showed an increase of 32.39% year-on-year and beat estimates by $3.50 billion. EPS was recorded at $30.69, outperforming analysts’ estimates by $3.41. As of April 1, Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) has seen its share price soar 26.44% in the last 12 months, and 5.18% in the last 6 months.
Popular hedge funds held major stakes in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) during the fourth quarter of 2021. In total, 158 hedge funds were bullish on the company shares, as opposed to 156 in the previous quarter. TCI Fund Management was the top shareholder of the tech firm over the fourth quarter, with a $8.54 billion stake consisting of 2.95 million shares.
Vulcan Value Partners, an investment firm, gave its views regarding Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) in its Q4 2021 investor letter. The fund said:
“In contrast, we made a different kind of mistake about a decade ago. Google, now Alphabet, performed very well for us while we owned it. The company kept outperforming our assumptions and we kept lowering them to be conservative. “Trees do not grow to the sky.” The stock kept going up and our value grew but did not keep pace with the stock. It hit our estimate of fair value and we sold it with a nice gain, patting ourselves on the back. We kept following the company and what they actually did over the next several years was roughly double the assumptions we used to value it. Therefore, our value was too conservative, and we sold it too cheaply, missing many years of compounding. Fortunately, we experienced some volatility several years ago that allowed us to purchase Alphabet (Google) again with a margin of safety.”
2. Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 262
Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) is a tech giant which provides software and computer hardware services around the globe. It also recently featured on Time Magazine’s list of the most influential companies in the world.
Jefferies analyst Brent Thill on March 16 noted that Microsoft Corporation’s (NASDAQ:MSFT) emerging Power Platform, which is used for app-building and data insights, could be the company’s ‘next growth engine’ and a “multi-billion dollar growth pillar’, with the long-term user opportunity of over 1 billion, as compared to 20 million users today. He gave Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) a ‘Buy’ rating and a price target of $400.
In the fourth quarter, Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) reported earnings per share of $2.48, beating consensus estimates by $0.16. $51.73 billion in revenue for the quarter was an increase of 20.09% year-on-year, and exceeded estimates by $938.45 million.
262 hedge funds were bullish on Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) in Q4 2021, with combined holdings of more than $75 billion. This shows growing investor confidence over the previous quarter, where 25o hedge funds were shareholders of the firm. Fisher Asset Management held a position in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) consisting of 26.84 million shares worth more than $9 billion, making it the top shareholder of the firm in the fourth quarter.
Investment firm ClearBridge Investments talked about Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) in its Q4 2021 investor letter. Here’s what the fund said:
“Despite these mixed emerging growth results, the ClearBridge Global Growth Strategy outperformed the benchmark due to resilience among our secular and structural growth holdings. The bulk of these contributions came from U.S. mega-cap growth stocks Apple and Microsoft which continued to uniquely act both offensively and defensively as they have through most of the pandemic.”
1. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 279
Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) ranks first on our list of safe stocks to buy and hold long-term in 2022. Deutsche Bank analyst Lee Horowitz in March initiated coverage of Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) with a ‘Buy’ rating and a price target of $4,100. He believes the market does not fully appreciate the upside associated with the firm’s retail revenue and Amazon Web Services, and sees a “highly compelling” risk/reward at current levels. The online retail giant recently closed an $8.5 billion deal to purchase film studios MGM, which will add more than 4,000 film titles to Amazon’s Prime Video streaming service.
Investor confidence is up on Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN). In the fourth quarter, 279 hedge funds were long on the company shares, as compared to 242 hedge funds a quarter ago. Fisher Asset Management held 2.16 million shares of Amazon valued at $7.22 billion, making it the top shareholder of the firm in Q4 2021.
Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) posted an EPS of $27.75 in the fourth quarter, beating analysts’ estimates by $24.09. Quarterly revenue stood at $137.41 billion, signalling a jump of 9.44% year-over-year but falling below consensus estimates by $173.16 million.
Here is what Davis Funds, an investment firm, had to say about Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) in its Q4 2021 investor letter:
“Within the traditional growth category, growing euphoria has led to bubble prices for many companies, most especially those with new and unproven business models such as those discussed above. In contrast, our research focuses on a select handful of proven growth stalwarts whose shares still trade at reasonable valuations. For example, because of concerns about future litigation and regulation, several dominant internet businesses, including Amazon, trade at steep discounts to many unproven and unprofitable growth darlings that, in our view, trade at euphoric prices. While we expect a continued barrage of negative headlines around the company, as well as increased regulation in the years ahead, we do not expect a significant decline in its long-term profitability.”
You can also take a look at 15 Biggest Natural Gas Companies In The World and Larry Robbins’ Top Stock Picks.
