I believe that buying shares and holding onto them for the long term is one of the most efficient ways of building wealth.

This is because buy and hold investing allows investors to benefit from compound interest. This is essentially interest on top of interest or returns on top of returns when it comes to shares.

A $1,000 investment earning a 10% return will be worth $1,100 after one year, but almost $2,600 after 10 years.

And then if we look even further into the future, this single investment becomes almost $120,000 in 50 years if you continue to earn the same level of return.

With that in mind, here are a few top shares which I think would make great buy and hold investments. They are as follows:

Appen Ltd (ASX: APX)

The first share to consider buying and holding is Appen. It is a leading developer of high-quality, human annotated datasets for the machine learning and artificial intelligence markets. Due to the growing importance of machine learning and artificial intelligence, these markets are expected to continue growing materially in the future. I expect this to underpin strong earnings growth over the next 10 years.

Nanosonics Ltd (ASX: NAN)

This pandemic has shown us just how important infection control is. I believe this bodes well for Nanosonics’ industry-leading trophon EPR disinfection system for ultrasound probes. In addition to this, the company is planning to launch several new products in the near future which have similar addressable markets. All in all, I feel Nanosonics is well-positioned to be a market beater over the next decade and beyond.

SEEK Limited (ASX: SEK)

Another share to consider buying with a long term view is this job listings giant. The pandemic will certainly put a lot of pressure on job listings in the near term, but I expect listings to recover once the crisis passes. Looking ahead, SEEK is aiming to grow its revenues to $5 billion later this decade. This will be a big increase on the revenue of $1,537.3 million it recorded in FY 2019.

More reading

• The newspaper killers: 3 ASX 200 online classifieds shares dominating the market
• Why I would buy these exciting ASX growth shares right now
• Want to invest like Warren Buffett? Buy and hold these ASX 200 shares
• 4 top ASX shares to invest $4,000 into immediately
• 2 of the best ASX 200 healthcare shares to buy for the long term

James Mickleboro owns shares of SEEK Limited. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of Nanosonics Limited. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of Appen Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Nanosonics Limited and SEEK Limited. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

The post How you can get very rich with ASX 200 shares appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

from Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/2XcSwgV

ASX 200 shares have had a rocky start to the year. The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is down 16.17% in 2020 with the coronavirus pandemic and an oil price war hitting share prices hard.

However, we could be at a turning point in global markets. OPEC+ have slashed their daily oil production by around 10%, while US markets stormed higher overnight on the back of optimism surrounding a possible conronavirus vaccine.

So, what’s a good way to invest some spare cash in the market right now?

How to invest $10,000 in ASX 200 shares today

I think it’s important to invest in high-quality companies for the long-term. However, I get that it’s not easy to just ignore all the short-term share price movements in the meantime. 

I believe CSL Limited (ASX: CSL) could be a smart, long-term choice for investing $10,000 today. It’s the largest ASX 200 share by market capitalisation and is worth $139 billion right now. The biotech giant is looking to develop a potentially lifesaving plasma-derived treatment for people with COVID-19. Other than these short-term efforts, I also think CSL has a great business model overall.

It’s a leader in blood plasma treatment and biotechnology with a strong business moat. The CSL share price is trading at over $300 per share which is a testament to its long-term success since listing in 1994 at a stock-split-adjusted $0.766 per share. It’s hard to bet against the ASX 200 healthcare share given its track record and strong research and development pipeline.

CSL aside, I also like another Aussie large-cap share right now. Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) shares have crashed lower in 2020 with investors selling off ASX bank shares in droves. 

The CBA share price is down 24.97% since the start of the year thanks to the COVID-19 shutdown. There are fears for what the economic impact of the pandemic will be for Aussie businesses and their lenders. We’ve seen ASX 200 bank shares fall after announcing billions of dollars of impairments this year despite unprecedented government stimulus measures.

However, I think the CBA share price could be another way to successfully invest $10,000 today. The bank is a key pillar of the Aussie economy and could emerge with a refined business model and strong risk measures. This means CBA could be a leaner, stronger ASX 200 bank share that can churn out consistent profits in the decades ahead.

More reading

• This ASX 200 tech share is sinking 5% lower after its half year update
• 3 ASX 200 dividend shares I’d buy today
• Should you invest $1,000 in Woodside Petroleum shares?
• 2 millionaire-maker ASX internet growth shares
• 4 ASX 200 shares exposed to a fall in house prices

Ken Hall has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of CSL Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

The post How to invest $10,000 in ASX 200 shares today appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

from Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/2yYKwYN

Woodside Petroleum Ltd (ASX: WPL) shares have been smashed in 2020. The ASX 200 oil share is down 37% in 2020 (at the time of writing) amid an oil price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia.

But is Woodside going to keep falling lower or is it a good place to invest $1,000 right now?

Why are Woodside Petroleum shares falling lower?

The coronavirus pandemic has hit ASX 200 shares hard, but ASX energy shares have had something else to worry about. Tensions have been heightened between OPEC+ and Russia in 2020. The ongoing stand-off between the world’s largest oil producers has led to oversupply and even sent the oil price negative in May.

Woodside Petroleum shares have been smashed in response and Australia’s largest oil and gas producer has shed billions in value. However, there could be light at the end of the tunnel for Woodside and its shareholders.

There are signs of slowing oil supply in the world. OPEC+ has delivered oil production cuts which could help support global crude oil prices. The global alliance will trim supply by 9.7 million barrels per day or roughly a 10% cut to current levels.

That’s good news for the Woodside Petroleum share price. Higher oil prices are good for producers as they realise a higher average sale price. For shareholders, that could mean higher earnings and strong dividends.

Should you invest $1,000 in Woodside?

ASX energy shares are struggling right now. Woodside is being hit particularly hard despite slashing jobs to try and conserve cash amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

If you want to invest $1,000 in Woodside Petroleum shares, it could turn out to be a great investment. However, I think it would have to be part of a highly diversified ASX share portfolio. ASX energy shares like Woodside are volatile at the moment and no one knows how geopolitics will play out in the current environment.

That means Woodside Petroleum shares could fall lower before they recover in the long-term. I don’t think I’m willing to buy just yet, but a 37% share price decline is certainly tempting to any value investor.

More reading

• This ASX 200 tech share is sinking 5% lower after its half year update
• 3 ASX 200 dividend shares I’d buy today
• How to invest $10,000 in ASX 200 shares today
• 2 millionaire-maker ASX internet growth shares
• A vaccine (probably) won’t be a quick fix for the ASX 200

Motley Fool contributor Ken Hall has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

The post Should you invest $1,000 in Woodside Petroleum shares? appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

from Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/2WJzkIz