There aren’t many ASX shares that I’d be happy to invest $1,000 into every month.

There are plenty of shares that are quality businesses like Altium Limited (ASX: ALU), Pro Medicus Limited (ASX: PME) and Pushpay Holdings Ltd (ASX: PPH). But the share prices of those companies have performed so strongly since March I’m not sure I could commit to buying them every month. No business is a ‘buy at any price’.

The ASX shares that I’d be willing to buy every month are ones that usually trade at a reasonable valuation, have good long-term prospects and have a history of producing good returns for shareholders:

Share 1: Magellan Global Trust (ASX: MGG)

Magellan Global Trust is a listed investment trust (LIT) which invests in the best overseas shares.

Quality really shines through during tough economic times. I think you can definitely call this COVID-19 period a tough economic time.

Some of Magellan Global Trust’s biggest positions at the moment include: Alibaba, Alphabet, Atmos Energy, Microsoft, Tencent, Facebook, Visa, Mastercard, Reckitt Benckiser and Novartis.

You may have noticed there’s a focus on technology businesses within its holdings. I think this is good. Technology businesses have changed the world over the past decade and that’s likely to continue. Businesses like Microsoft and Alphabet are important players in the shift to cloud computing. Visa and Mastercard are integral for facilitating the big change to ecommerce (accelerated by COVID-19). And so on.

The ASX share’s net investment performance has been solid since inception in October 2017, returning 11.4% per annum – outperforming its global benchmark by more than 1% per annum.

At the current Magellan Global Trust share price it’s trading at a 4% discount to the net asset value (NAV).

Share 2: BetaShares Global Sustainability Leaders ETF (ASX: ETHI)

Many of the best shares in the world aren’t on the ASX. Indeed, the ASX only makes up 2% of the global share market. There are some great businesses out there in the world that are also doing their best to operate profitably and sustainably with an aim of doing the right thing for the climate.

This exchange-traded fund (ETF) is invested in around 200 businesses. None of them are involved in a number of excluded activities like gambling, tobacco, alcohol, junk food, destroying valuable environments and so on. This ETF particularly excludes businesses with direct involvement with the fossil fuel industry and it also excludes businesses with other bad climate credentials.

So what shares is it actually invested in? Its biggest holdings currently are: Apple, Nvidia, Mastercard, Visa, Adobe, Home Depot, Paypal, Netflix and Toyota.

I think this ETF is a good one to buy every month because it always trades at its net asset value, it’s a quality portfolio and the returns have been strong. Since January 2017 the ETF has returned an average of 20.7% per annum after fees.

Share 3: Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES)

I think Wesfarmers is one of those ASX shares that you can invest in and leave for many years.

The conglomerate can trace its history back to 1914. It has great staying power. It’s an ASX share that you could have bought at almost any point over the previous decades and done well to date.

I think Wesfarmers’ solid performance can continue for two key reasons.

Its current group of businesses is a strong collection. Bunnings, Officeworks and Kmart are leaders in their respective retail segments. Online retailer Catch is growing at a fast pace, particularly due to the COVID-19 shift to e-commerce.

But I’m confident that I could continue investing in Wesfarmers into the future because it’s constantly evolving. The ASX share will happily invest in new businesses and divest old ones when it doesn’t suit to hold them any more, like its former coal assets.

At the current Wesfarmers share price it’s trading at 27x FY21’s estimated earnings.

Foolish takeaway

Of the three potential ASX share investments it’s hard to choose between Magellan Global Trust and the BetaShares ETF. I like the investment flexibility that the Magellan Trust has, but the ETF’s costs are 0.76% cheaper per year and it has outperformed the Magellan Global Trust.

More reading

• Why the Pushpay share price soared 19% in June
• 2 fantastic ASX growth shares to buy with $2,000
• Fund managers have been buying Costa and this ASX 200 share
• Why buying Altium shares could make you rich
• 3 ASX dividend shares growing their payouts fast

Tristan Harrison owns shares of Altium and MAGLOBTRST UNITS. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of Altium and PUSHPAY FPO NZX. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. recommends Pro Medicus Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Pro Medicus Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of Wesfarmers Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended PUSHPAY FPO NZX. 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.

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The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) was out of form last week and dropped notably lower. The benchmark index fell a disappointing 2.3% to 5,919.2 points.

Not all shares dropped lower with the market last week. Here’s why these ASX 200 shares were flying high:

The Netwealth Group Ltd (ASX: NWL) share price was the best performer on the ASX with a 18.4% gain. Investors were buying the investment platform provider’s shares last week following the release of its fourth quarter update. At the end of the quarter, Netwealth’s funds under administration (FUA) had climbed to a sizeable $31.5 billion. This means the company grew its FUA by $8.2 billion or 35% during FY 2020. This includes a negative market movement of $0.9 billion for the 12 months.

The Perseus Mining Limited (ASX: PRU) share price was an impressive performer last week with a 12.3% gain. The catalyst for this strong gain was another rise in the gold price. Traders were fighting to get hold of the precious metal after coronavirus cases spiked globally. Demand was so strong the gold price broke through the US$1,800 an ounce mark and hit a nine-year high. For the same reason, St Barbara Ltd (ASX: SBM) and Gold Road Resources Ltd (ASX: GOR) shares stormed 10.3% and 9.3% higher, respectively.

The Mesoblast limited (ASX: MSB) share price was on form and jumped 8.9% last week. Investors were buying the allogeneic cellular medicines developer’s shares after it provided an update on its allogeneic mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) product candidate, remestemcel-L. That update revealed that the product has been given an expanded access protocol for compassionate use in the treatment of COVID-19 infected children with cardiovascular and other complications of multisystem inflammatory syndrome.

The Megaport Ltd (ASX: MP1) share price wasn’t far behind with a gain of 8.4%. This was despite there being no news out of the global leading provider of elastic interconnection services. However, with the pandemic accelerating the shift to the cloud, investors appear confident that Megaport will be experiencing very strong demand for its services.

More reading

• ASX 200 drops 0.6%, Afterpay hits a new record
• 2 exciting ASX tech shares with enormous potential
• The Treasury Wine share price and this ASX 200 stock are the latest to be hit by broker downgrades today
• Fund managers have been buying Costa and this ASX 200 share
• Brokers name 3 ASX 200 shares to buy today

James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of MEGAPORT FPO. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of Netwealth. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended MEGAPORT FPO. 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.

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Concerns over a spike in coronavirus cases weighed heavily on the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) last week. The benchmark index fell a disappointing 2.3% to 5,919.2 points.

While a good number of shares dropped lower, some fell more than most. Here’s why these ASX 200 shares were the worst performers:

The Corporate Travel Management Ltd (ASX: CTD) share price was the worst performer on the ASX 200 last week with a 15.2% decline. Investors were selling travel shares last week after the outbreak of coronavirus in Melbourne sparked fears that the domestic travel market recovery could take longer than originally anticipated.

The Domain Holdings Australia Ltd (ASX: DHG) share price was out of form and dropped 12.5% last week. Once again, this appears to have been driven by the spike in coronavirus cases. Given how important the Melbourne market is to overall listing volumes, the six-week lockdown is likely to lead to a notable reduction in listings.

The AP Eagers Ltd (ASX: APE) share price wasn’t far behind with a 10.7% decline. This was despite there being no news out of the auto retailer last week. However, with its shares up more than 100% from their March low, investors may have been taking a bit of profit off the table. There may also be concerns that another outbreak could negatively impact near term car sales.

The Monadelphous Group Limited (ASX: MND) share price was a poor performer last week and fell 10.6%. This was also despite there being no news or broker notes relating to the engineering company. Investors may have concerns that the recent outbreak of coronavirus could weigh on its performance. In May the company advised that its Engineering Construction division experienced supply chain issues because of the pandemic. This was causing delays on large resources construction projects currently in progress, as well as a number of temporary deferrals to potential new construction contract award dates.

More reading

• ASX 200 down 0.5%: Afterpay completes placement, big four banks tumble
• These were the 5 best performing ASX shares last week
• ASX 200 Weekly Wrap: Afterpay, Tech push ASX 200 back above 6,000
• The Webjet share price is dividing analysts even as it becomes a likely takeover target
• These were the best performing ASX 200 shares last week

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Corporate Travel Management 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.

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The WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC) share price was hit hard in the early phase of the coronavirus pandemic, falling from $29.44 in mid February to $10.48 in in mid March. Since then WiseTech’s share price has seen a partial recovery, however, it is now only trading at $20.34, well below its pre-COVID-19 levels.

Global trade is now picking up, which means WiseTech is gradually seeing its operations get back to normal levels. WiseTech continues to invest for future, and believes it is well placed to tap into the growing demand for logistics solutions.

So, is the WiseTech Global share price in the buy zone?

What is compelling about the WiseTech business model?

WiseTech Global is a world-leading developer and provider of software solutions to the logistics industry. Its customer base is now in excess of 15,000 and spans more than 150 countries.

As the global economy continues to grow, logistics – the process of manufacturing and efficiently delivering products to the end consumer – has grown more complex. WiseTech has carved out a very successful niche in addressing this growing issue.

WiseTech’s flagship product is CargoWise One. It can be tailored for each customer’s supply chain. It provides logistic services including customs brokerage, HR management, and online tracking and tracing.

CargoWise One doesn’t operate as a traditional subscription-based software-as-a-service (SaaS) product. WiseTech generates revenue depending on how an individual customer utilises the software. This enables WiseTech to grow its revenues as customers expand their usage. CargoWise One also has an extremely high 99% retention rate.

Strong revenue growth despite short-term challenges

WiseTech has continued to grow at a strong pace in recent times, in both size and scale via organic growth and targeted acquisitions. Between 1H16 and 1H20, WiseTech has grown its revenue base at a compound annual growth rate of 43%. The company continues to invest strongly to drive product innovation. This provides a solid foundation for future growth.

In February, WiseTech downgraded its earnings forecast for FY 2020. It now anticipates revenue growth of between 5% and 22%. This downgrade was driven by a sharp downturn in manufacturing and economic trade in the first few months of the coronavirus pandemic.

Foolish takeaway

With the WiseTech Global share price still well down on pre-COVID levels, I think now could be a good buying opportunity for long-term investors. As global trading begins to start to get back to more normal levels, I believe this should see WiseTech Global’s revenue stream start to pick up. I remain confident that WiseTech Global is well placed to grow it revenues over the next five years, driven by the rising demand for logistic solutions.

More reading

• Why GWA, Meridian Energy, Treasury Wine, & WiseTech Global are dropping lower
• The WiseTech share price is up 15% in a week. Too late to buy?
• Why Lovisa, PointsBet, Transurban, & WiseTech shares are racing higher
• What’s next for WAAAX shares?
• Should ASX investors be worried about insider selling?

Motley Fool contributor Phil Harpur owns shares of WiseTech Global. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of WiseTech Global. 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.

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The recent market crash means that there are a number of cheap stocks available to buy in a variety of sectors. Certainly, their prices could move lower in the short run due to risks such as a weak global economic outlook and the potential for a second wave of coronavirus. However, over the long run they could deliver impressive returns that boost your retirement prospects.

As such, buying a diverse range of cheap shares today could be a sound move. They could offer significantly higher returns than other assets over the coming years.

Market crash

The recent market crash may have dissuaded some investors from buying cheap stocks. After all, it was one of the fastest declines in the stock market’s history. There may even be further risks ahead, with the potential for a second crash later in the year should a spike in coronavirus cases take place.

However, declines in the stock market are not all that uncommon. For example, over recent decades investors have experienced other bear markets such as the global financial crisis and the tech bubble.

As such, temporary declines in stock prices are likely to occur fairly regularly over an investor’s lifetime. While they can cause panic in the short run due to the paper losses they create, on a long-term view they provide buying opportunities that can positively impact on your portfolio’s performance.

Buying cheap stocks

A stock market crash presents an opportunity to buy cheap stocks across a wide range of industries. Weak investor sentiment and challenging trading conditions over the short run can combine to cause high-quality businesses to offer wide margins of safety. Over time, such companies are likely to experience improving operating conditions, rising profitability and growing sentiment among investors. This can lead to rising stock prices and high returns for investors who bought while stock prices were low.

Of course, ensuring that you purchase attractive businesses is highly important at the present time. Some companies may struggle to survive a period of weak economic performance that causes disruption to their operating environment. Therefore, focusing your capital on financially-sound businesses with wide economic moats could be a sound move that lowers your risks and boosts your long-term returns.

Relative appeal

Since the stock market has always recovered from its bear markets and downturns to post new record highs, buying cheap stocks today is likely to produce long-term growth via a successful recovery.

Moreover, on a relative basis the stock market appears to have significant appeal. Other mainstream assets such as cash and bonds lack return potential due to low interest rates that may remain in place over the medium term to support an economic recovery. As a result, stocks may be the most attractive means of improving your portfolio’s prospects and of increasing your chances of retiring early.

More reading

• 3 ASX shares that I’d invest $1,000 into EVERY month
• These were the best performing ASX 200 shares last week
• These were the worst performing ASX 200 shares last week
• Why I think the WiseTech share price is in the buy zone
• Here are the top 5 ASX tech shares on the All Tech Index

Motley Fool contributor Peter Stephens 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.

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ASX tech shares have been dominating the ASX news cycle over the past few weeks and months. Whether it’s Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) or Xero Limited (ASX: XRO) making new all-time highs every week or Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P) shares rocketing more than 600% since March, these tech shares are never far from the headlines these days.

So I thought I would examine which ASX tech shares are the most dominant on the ASX today. The S&P/ASX All Technology Index (ASX: XTX) is the ASX index that tracks the tech space in Australia, so let’s take a look at the top 5 shares that move this index.

1) Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT)

No real surprise that Afterpay takes the ASX crown with an 18% weighting in the index. Afterpay has been on an incredible run in recent months. After bottoming out at $8.01 in mid-March, Afterpay shares made yet another fresh record high at $76.62 in intraday trade yesterday – a trough to peak rise of 857% in just the last 3.5 months.

2) Xero Limited (ASX: XRO)

The second-largest ASX tech share in the index is cloud-based accounting software giant Xero with a 10.8% weighting. This is another company that investors can’t get enough of these days. Xero shares have climbed nearly 60% since their March lows and made a new all-time high just yesterday of $94.31.

3) Seek Limited (ASX: SEK)

Seek takes out the ASX tech bronze medal with an 8.2% weighting. Seek is the largest provider of online classifieds in the jobs and employment space. With its $7.55 billion market capitalisation, Seek is one of the companies that managed to effectively disrupt the old newspaper’s fabled ‘rivers of gold’ classifieds business model. Unlike Afterpay and Xero though, Seek shares haven’t been able to top their February highs just yet, although the Seek share price is still up nearly 80% from its March lows.

4) Computershare Limited (ASX: CPU)

Computershare is something of an ‘under the radar’ tech share these days. It has been around a while too, having started life back in 1978. This company makes a crust by managing share registries, corporate stock accounts and employee share plans. Chances are if you invest in ASX shares already, you will be familiar with its services. Like Seek, Computershare shares are still a ways off of their pre-March highs, although investors would have enjoyed the stock’s 55% surge since its March lows.

5) REA Group Limited (ASX: REA)

REA is our fifth and final ASX tech share on the XTX index. Another ‘newspaper disrupter’ at its heart, REA runs realestate.com.au – the most popular online real estate marketplace in Australia by a long-shot. This company has made its investors an absolute fortune over the past 2 decades with the REA share price up a staggering 37,400% since July 2000. REA shares took a big tumble in the March crash this year, but have since recovered more than 60% from their lows.

Foolish takeaway

AS you can see, ASX tech shares come in all shapes and sizes. But as this sector has shown in recent months, the tech space can be one of the most lucrative to invest in. The ASX tech index is one that deserves to be watched closely going forward, and I think all ASX investors should be familiar with its major holdings.

More reading

• What does COVID-19 and the payment revolution mean for Afterpay and Sezzle?
• ASX 200 drops 0.6%, Afterpay hits a new record
• Short sellers are betting US$20bn against the skyrocketing Tesla share price
• The Openpay share price is surging today. Is it the next Afterpay?
• Why Kogan, Netwealth, Silver Lake, & Zip Co shares are storming higher

Sebastian Bowen has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of Xero and ZIPCOLTD FPO. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of AFTERPAY T FPO. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended REA Group 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.

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One thing that all ASX investors should know is that market crashes are inevitable. The very nature of capital markets encourages fear and greed at every turn. These duelling emotions cause market volatility, corrections and sometimes crashes.

We’ve recently had one of the most severe and simultaneously short market crashes in history back in March, so many investors will be hoping that we won’t see another crash for a while. But the next crash, whether it’s 1 month or 10 years’ away – is still inevitable. So with this sobering reality in mind, here are the 3 ASX shares that I won’t be hesitating to buy if and when the next crash comes around.

Washington H. Soul Pattinson & Co Ltd (ASX: SOL)

‘Soul Patts’ as its easily known, is one of the best dividend-paying shares on the ASX, in my opinion. It has increased its dividend every year since the year 2000 and paid a dividend every year going back to 1903. That’s a record that cannot be rivalled by any other ASX company.

Today, Soul Patts is more of a conglomerate than a real company. It owns massive stakes in several quality ASX companies, including Brickworks Ltd (ASX: BKW) and TPG Telecom Ltd (ASX: TPG). I already own shares in Soul Patts, but I would love to load the boat when the next market crash does come around.

VanEck Vectors Wide Moat ETF (ASX: MOAT)

This exchange-traded fund (ETF) is one of my favourite passive ASX investments. It aims to hold a mid-sized portfolio of US shares that display characteristics of possessing a wide economic moat. A ‘moat’ is a Warren Buffett term that refers to a company’s intrinsic competitive advantage. This might be a strong brand, intellectual property assets, or stickiness of a product. Some of MOAT’s holdings include credit card company American Express, cereal maker Kellogg and Buffett’s own Berkshire Hathaway. MOAT will be in my sights if there’s a good pricing opportunity down the road, to be sure.

Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG)

Macquarie is sometimes called the ASX’s ‘fifth bank’, but this characterisation is slightly misleading. This financial company does offer banking services much like the big four banks like Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA). But most of Macquarie’s operations are in the asset management and investment banking arenas, which I think are far better placed for shareholder wealth creation than the traditional banking services these days.

Macquarie is a rather cyclical share that tends to drop heavily in market crashes and enthusiastically recover afterwards. As such, I’m looking forward to starting a position in this company when the next buying opportunity exposes itself.

Foolish takeaway

Market crashes are a scary time to have money in shares. But they are also usually the best time to be buying shares for your portfolio. I’m not hoping for another crash, but I sure will be ready to buy these ASX shares when it does come around.

More reading

• ANZ said there will be another wave of Victorian businesses collapsing
• Why I would buy CBA and this high yield ASX dividend share
• The Treasury Wine share price and this ASX 200 stock are the latest to be hit by broker downgrades today
• Ramsay and 2 other ASX shares to buy and hold beyond 2026
• 3 ASX shares I’d invest $1,000 into right now

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen owns shares of VanEck Vectors Morningstar Wide Moat ETF and Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Company Limited. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Brickworks, Macquarie Group Limited, and Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Company Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended VanEck Vectors Morningstar Wide Moat ETF. 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.

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