Long-Term Stock Portfolio: 5 Best Stocks for 20 Years

In this piece, we will take a look at the 5 best stocks for the next 20 years. For more stocks on this list, head on over to Long-Term Stock Portfolio: Best Stocks for 20 Years.

5. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 131

There is widespread agreement among hedge funds and Wall Street analysts that Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) is an excellent long-term investment choice. The consensus stems from various factors such as Apple Inc.’s robust product line, significant growth in services and software, and its ongoing commitment to innovation and long-term strategies. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) announced its financial results for FQ2 on May 4, surpassing expectations on Wall Street with a GAAP EPS of $1.52 and revenue of $94.84 billion, exceeding estimates by $0.09 and $2 billion, respectively. Similar to some other names in our list, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has been favored by billionaire Warren Buffett for several years.

Our hedge fund data for the first quarter shows 131 hedge funds long Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL). Their total stake value was $165 billion. Holding 915.6 million shares in the company, Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway was the largest stakeholder in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) at the end of the first quarter.

Silver Ring Value Partners made the following comment about Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) in its first-quarter 2023 investor letter:

“Exited the Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) put options position, as I came to the conclusion that I was wrong about the degree to which the stock is overvalued. While I still believe it’s optimistically priced, the fundamentals over the last few years made me believe that my initial decision to buy the put options was wrong.”

4. Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 136

Payments giant Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) ranks fourth on our list of the best stocks for 20 years. Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE: MA) disclosed its Q1 financial results on April 27th, surpassing Wall Street expectations with a non-GAAP EPS of $2.80 and a revenue of $5.7 billion. These figures exceeded estimates by $0.09 and $60 million, respectively. The stock’s 12 month average price target is estimated to reach $434.47, with a 14.39% upside.

138 of the 943 hedge funds part of Insider Monkey’s database had bought Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)’s shares in Q1 2023. Out of these, Charles Akre’s Akre Capital Management is the largest shareholder since it owns 5.8 million shares that are worth $2.1 billion.

Polen Global Growth Strategy made the following comment about Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) in its Q1 2023 investor letter:

“We trimmed Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) and Visa to equal weights of the Portfolio. Mastercard and Visa operate as a duopoly in a large and growing market. Over the last 50 years, global personal consumer expenditures (PCE) has grown 7-9% annualized. We expect 4-5% long-term PCE growth going forward. Additionally, the shift from cash to credit continues unabated, with a total credit penetration of only approximately 50% globally.3 This shift provides Visa and Mastercard with another ~4-6% of growth. When combined with PCE, this gives both companies high-single-digit to low-double-digit revenue growth opportunities. This growth estimate is before accounting for growth amplifiers like the acceleration of e-commerce, the shift from offline to online, and additional services. Both companies enjoy extremely strong network effects that provide strong competitive advantages.

We have trimmed Visa and Mastercard because their combined weight grew to over 12% of the Global Growth Portfolio because of their recent performance and to fund our increase in Amazon’s position size. We added to both positions when their prices were depressed due to cross-border transactions deteriorating materially from the pandemic. Cross-border volumes came roaring back when travel corridors reopened, and although we are several quarters removed from the cross-border nadir, Visa still grew volumes >30% in 1Q23. Total cross-border volumes are now 132% of 2019 levels. At 4.5% each, both companies remain high conviction positions for Global Growth.”

3. Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 155

Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) stands as a prominent technology giant. At the core of its operations lies Google, a search engine that handles billions of queries every single day. The firm also encompasses an array of video streaming and productivity platforms, including Youtube. Additionally, the company engages in the sale of electronic devices such as smartphones, ultra-thin notebooks, and speakers. The tech giant has been a part of value investor David Abrams portfolio for half a decade.

Bank of America analyst Justin Post reaffirmed his positive outlook on Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) stock on May 11. With a Buy rating and a price target of $128, Post acknowledged the significant value brought by the firm’s AI integrations to both new and existing products.

According to Insider Monkey’s first quarter database, 155 hedge funds were bullish on Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG), compared to 152 funds in the preceding quarter. Harris Associates is the biggest stakeholder of the company, with 36.90 million shares worth $3.8 billion.

Mairs & Power Growth Fund made the following comment about Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) in its first quarter 2023 investor letter:

“As we have mentioned in previous months, we have slowly reduced our underweight position in the Technology sector over the past several years, as we have added a number of names that fit our investment strategy. Many of these investments had impressive returns in the quarter and our relative performance in the tech sector was a bright spot. Four out of our top 5 performing names in the quarter were either Technology or Technology-related names, including: NVIDIA (NVDA), Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG), Littelfuse (LFUS), and Microsoft (MSFT). The stocks all benefited from a positive shift in investor sentiment in the quarter toward growth stocks, reversing last year’s trend. NVIDIA, Alphabet, and Microsoft also all benefited from their exposure to artificial intelligence and the headlines garnered from the widespread launch of ChatGPT a large language model developed by Microsoft partner, OpenAI. In the current tight labor market, there is a lot of enthusiasm around the efficiency this technology could bring to many industries. Alphabet and Microsoft are working furiously to build it into their products and NVIDIA has benefited as it currently has the best hardware to train and run large AI algorithms.”

2. Visa Inc. (NYSE:V)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 173

Visa Inc. (NYSE:V) is an American multinational financial services corporation headquartered in San Francisco, California. It facilitates electronic funds transfers throughout the world, most commonly through Visa-branded credit cards, debit cards and prepaid cards. One of the world’s most valuable companies, it currently pays a quarterly dividend of $0.45 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.77%, as of June 28. The electronic payments company is one of Warren Buffett’s oldest bets.

At the end of March 31, 173 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey held stakes in Visa Inc. (NYSE:V), compared with 177 in the previous quarter. Collectively, these stakes are worth over $26 billion.

Polen Capital made the following comment about Visa Inc. (NYSE:V) in its Q1 2023 investor letter:

“We trimmed Mastercard and Visa Inc. (NYSE:V) to equal weights of the Portfolio. Mastercard and Visa operate as a duopoly in a large and growing market. Over the last 50 years, global personal consumer expenditures (PCE) has grown 7-9% annualized. We expect 4-5% long-term PCE growth going forward. Additionally, the shift from cash to credit continues unabated, with a total credit penetration of only approximately 50% globally.3 This shift provides Visa and Mastercard with another ~4-6% of growth. When combined with PCE, this gives both companies high-single-digit to low-double[1]digit revenue growth opportunities. This growth estimate is before accounting for growth amplifiers like the acceleration of e[1]commerce, the shift from offline to online, and additional services. Both companies enjoy extremely strong network effects that provide strong competitive advantages.

We have trimmed Visa and Mastercard because their combined weight grew to over 12% of the Global Growth Portfolio because of their recent performance and to fund our increase in Amazon’s position size. We added to both positions when their prices were depressed due to cross-border transactions deteriorating materially from the pandemic. Cross-border volumes came roaring back when travel corridors reopened, and although we are several quarters removed from the cross-border nadir, Visa still grew volumes >30% in 1Q23. Total cross-border volumes are now 132% of 2019 levels. At 4.5% each, both companies remain high conviction positions for Global Growth.”

1. Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Number of Hedge Fund Holder: 220

Formerly known as Facebook, Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) changed its name back in October 2021 to announce its focus on the metaverse. In addition to being a tech firm that owns and runs social media platforms, , the company has accelerated the launch preparations for a new Meta VR headset, posing potential competition to Apple’s latest VR offering. Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) was a part of David Abrams portfolio since 2018.

On May 15, investment advisory Loop Capital upgraded Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) to Buy from Hold and raised the stock’s price target to $320 from $220.

According to Insider Monkey’s first quarter database, 220 hedge funds were long Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META), compared to 194 funds in the prior quarter. Billionaire Philippe Laffont’s Coatue Management is one of the largest stakeholders of the company, with a position worth $1.70 billion.

Harding Loevner Global Equity Strategy made the following comment about Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) in its Q1 2023 investor letter:

“The losses from SVB and First Republic were significantly mitigated, though not fully offset, by a rebound in shares of growth companies, which contributed to outperformance among our Communication Services and IT holdings. Our biggest relative contributor was Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META), the parent of Facebook, which pledged to boost efficiency through layoffs and a hiring freeze.”

Disclosure: None. You can also take a look at 10 Best Big Name Stocks to Buy Now and 11 Best FMCG Stocks To Buy Now.