Investing in the stock market can be as difficult or easy as you’d like to make it for yourself.
If you plan on earning short-term gains by timing the market, your work will be cut out for you. Predicting short-term movements in the stock market is incredibly difficult to do.
Long-term investors, however, have the luxury of being patient. As market pullbacks are inevitable, long-term investors can instead focus their time on finding top-quality businesses that they’re comfortable holding for years to come.
Building a winning portfolio
There’s no secret recipe for building a successful investment portfolio of stocks. However, for those with long-term time horizons, there are a few things to keep in mind.
I’d encourage long-term investors to always keep diversification and growth potential top of mind. Diversifying between different asset classes can help reduce overall risk in a portfolio. In terms of growth potential, it’s ultimately going to be the compounded returns that are going to help you retire rich.
With that in mind, I’ve put together a well-diversified basket of three Canadian stocks. Together, the trio of companies can provide an investment portfolio with diversification, growth potential, and passive income.
Brookfield
Brookfield (TSX:BN.TO) does it all for its shareholders. The stock has been a massive market beater over the past decade and pays a dividend that’s nearing a 1% yield at today’s stock price. It’s the diversification, though, that sets Brookfield apart from many other TSX stocks.
The $85 billion company is a global asset manager. With operations across the globe, spanning a range of different industries, you won’t find many stocks more diversified than this one.
This is a perfect choice for investors who are still in the early stages of building their portfolio and could use the extra diversification.
Shopify
In terms of growth potential, the tech sector is an excellent place to be shopping. That’s especially true today, with no shortage of discounted tech stocks to choose from.
Shopify (TSX: SHOP) has rallied 70% over the past year, yet shares are still down 50% from all-time highs from 2021. Even so, the tech stock is up close to 300% over the past five years. In comparison, the broader Canadian stock market has returned less than 50%.
If you can handle the volatility, Shopify should be on your watch list. There are plenty of market-beating years still ahead for this tech company.
Bank of Nova Scotia
The Canadian banks are far from the most exciting stocks on the TSX, but there are two very good reasons to own one.
First off, they are dependable. The banking sector is certainly not fast-growing, but it has been reliable for Canadian investors for years.
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Dividends are the primary reason I’d suggest owning a bank stock in your portfolio. The Big Five are not only all currently yielding above 4% but also own some of the longest payout streaks on the TSX.
At a dividend yield that’s currently above 6%, Bank of Nova Scotia (TSX: BNS) is the highest-yielding among the Big Five. It’s also been paying a dividend to its shareholders for close to 200 consecutive years.
