Last year was one for the record books. Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500And Nasdaq Composite Each hit a new record for most points on the year. Additionally, the bull market continues to gain ground as we head into 2025, entering its second year in October.
Closing the door on the old and ringing in the new year is a good time for reflection, and as a seasoned investor, my first stop is usually my portfolio. One area I like to review is how stocks have emerged as my biggest holdings and dominated my portfolio, which provides insight into the future.
Here’s a look at my five biggest holdings to 2025 (as of January 13th) and the valuable investment moves from each.
Fishing, like investing, is full of “get it wrong” tales. Despite the incredible desire to buy a stock, life gets in the way, and some developments can make the stock soar, 100%, 500%, or even 1,000%. for me, Nivea (NASDAQ: NVDA ) Who was lost?
Early in my investing career, I owned a stake in a graphics processing unit (GPU) pioneer, but I sold it. Collecting tax losses In the year in 2010. I had always intended to buy back into the company, but the stock was underwater for most of the next five years, so I had time. Then the stock tripled in 2016, taking the wind out of my sails.
However, at the beginning of 2018, I found myself reconsidering. Nvidia commands a 70% share of the discrete desktop GPU market, has experienced strong demand for cryptocurrency mining, and has been making inroads into the self-driving car market. It was clear that CEO Jensen Huang had a knack for anticipating the next big thing and was adept at positioning Nvidia for success.
After much research and more soul-searching — and over two years of gains of over 600%, and despite the high price — I decided to buy Nvidia. In the following years, I added to my position several times. In the year When generative artificial intelligence (AI) went viral in early 2023, Nevia quickly became the gold standard, and my research — and guilt — paid off.
Since the purchase at the end of March 2018, Nvidia is up 2,200%, and the stock is now my largest holding, accounting for approximately 12% of my portfolio. Simply put, it’s too late to buy into an industry-leading company with a long history of innovation — even if the stock is far from yours.
When I started investing in late 2007, Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX ) It was the first stock I ever bought. I vividly remember cutting up my Blockbuster membership card after paying a late fee that exceeded the cost of the movie. Netflix offers DVDs by mail without high late fees. I was a happy customer, so buying the stock made perfect sense to me.
At the time, streaming was still in its infancy, but Netflix dominated the DVD-by-mail space, and I was impressed by its early, consistent market penetration and expansion. Since then, Netflix has become the undisputed king of streaming with 283 million subscribers worldwide. In the year The first stocks I bought in 2007 have grown 34,540% and Netflix is the second largest holding in my portfolio at 12%.
Profits of that size were only achieved because I held the stock consistently, which is harder than it sounds. Some shareholders They bailed after the 2011 “Qwikster” fiasco, others predicted Netflix would lose 1.2 million subscribers by mid-2022, and others objected to Netflix’s advertising campaign. Through all those challenges and more, I held the stock.
The company has tested the mettle of investors many times over the years, but for those who realized that the investment thesis had not changed and was ongoing, the reward was life-changing.
I’m sorry if you’ve never heard of it Mercado Libre (NASDAQ: MELI)Not a household name in the US, but from humble beginnings as an online auction platform, it has become a leading technology company in Latin America, providing digital retail and payment services to 18 countries in the region. Mercado Libre offers logistics and shipping services, cross-docking and warehousing, online payments, digital wallets, consumer and merchant finance, and more.
Some investors are reluctant to invest in the stock thanks to natural risks that include political instability, economic instability, and high inflation, among others. For example, Argentina, Mercado Libre’s home country and one of its biggest markets, had inflation of 166 percent year-on-year in November, and that’s just one test.
However, those risks mask great opportunities. Although several years behind penetration in the United States, the adoption rate of online retail and digital payments is among the fastest growing in the world, with twice the population of the US Mercado Libre making every transaction handled on its website. Protecting the company from many risks. In the first nine months of 2024, Mercado Libre’s revenue grew 38 percent year over year, while net income rose 55 percent.
Understanding the level of risk and the amount of opportunity I made an educated decision to buy this “risky” stock, this decision was extremely beneficial. In 2009, modest initial investment grew by 7,900 percent. Combine that with several other trailing investments and MercadoLibre accounts for approximately 8% of your portfolio.
This lesson helps show how to reduce risk.
Although there have been many challenges in the past two years, Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL ) It remains the most valuable company in the world and one of the most successful in history. In the year When the stock surpassed $1 trillion in market capitalization in 2018 — and many times since then — some investors believed the company had peaked, and there was little left.
Additionally, the iPhone accounts for more than half of Apple’s revenue, but sales are beginning to slow as the global smartphone market continues to creep up. Add to that the uncertain economy, and it’s easy to understand the frustration of some investors.
But recent years have shown the resilience of Apple’s services division, which has grown every four years despite the worst recession in decades. This segment generated $96 billion in revenue in fiscal 2024 (ended September 30), more than 77 percent of the companies in the Fortune 500. Additionally, Apple continues to dominate the global smartphone market despite declining iPhone sales. Three top-selling models and four of the top 10, according to Counterpoint Research.
Selling a stock too early can be a costly investment mistake, as was certainly the case with Apple. In the year A charter member of the $1 trillion club in 2018, the stock returned 350%, more than triple the return of the S&P 500. Also, since I first bought it in 2008, Apple’s stock price has increased by 4,120%. Approximately 8% of my portfolio to be my fourth largest position.
I’m sure there will be more to come.
Occasionally, I find myself looking at a stock that has fallen and thinking, “This can’t be right.” Such was the situation. Business desk (NASDAQ:TT) In the year In early 2020. For a long time it was one of the most guilty stocks – I was Increase for several years. The company was a digital advertising powerhouse and continues to gain market share, growing faster than the industry.
Imagine my surprise when — in the four-week period between February 19 and March 18, 2020 — the stock lost 54 percent of its value. This is not due to any operational failure, corruption or financial malpractice on the part of the trading desk, but rather an indication of the onset of a global pandemic. However, I had followed the company for years and was convinced that this was excessive bitterness on the part of investors.
After checking to make sure nothing else had changed, I put my money where my mouth is and It has doubled. My position in the business desk. My logic was simple. Ad demand wasn’t going anywhere and the company had a track record of using sophisticated algorithms to automate the ad buying process to ensure the right ads reached their targets. Also, the stock was trading at about half of what it was a month ago. But the investment thesis had not changed..
Since then, despite enduring the worst recession in decades, the stock has gained 717%. Also from I first In March 2018, he bought shares of Trade Desk, which saw the stock rise by 2,349%. As a result, the trading desk is my fifth largest holding heading into 2025, representing 7% of my portfolio.
The lesson here is simple. If the thesis doesn’t change and a big company is selling at a discount, don’t be afraid to buy on the dip.
If there’s one big lesson to be learned from this list, it’s the power of combining long-term buying and investing. Each of these stocks have been staples in my portfolio for years. Nivea and Trade Desk are the most recent additions to the top five in seven years, while I’ve owned Netflix shares for over 17 years. There were many instances where these stocks lost 25% to 50% of their value, but I resisted the usual practice of jumping in and out of stocks while trying to time the peaks and troughs of the broader market.
Doing nothing is one of the keys to investing success.
Have you ever felt like you missed the boat by buying the most successful stocks? Then you want to hear this.
Occasionally, our team of expert analysts a “Double bottom” stock Advice for companies who think they’re about to pop up. If you’re worried you’ve missed an investment opportunity, now is the time to buy before it’s too late. And the numbers speak for themselves-
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Nivea: If you invest $1,000 when we double in 2009, You will have $357,084!*
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Apple: If you invest $1,000 when we double in 2008, You will have $43,554!*
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Netflix: If you invest $1,000 when we double in 2004, You will have $462,766!*
Right now, we’re giving out “Double Down” alerts for three amazing companies, and there may not be another chance anytime soon.
3 See “double bottom” stocks
* Stock advisor returns from January 13, 2025
Danny Vena It has positions in Apple, MercadoLibre, Netflix, Nvidia and The Trade Desk. Motley Fool features and recommends Apple, Mercado Libre, Netflix, Nvidia, and Trade Desk. The Motley Fool has Disclosure Policy.
My 5 Biggest Portfolio Holdings to 2025 — and the Important Investment Lessons I Learned from Each Originally published by The Motley Fool.
