Finding the right investments to act on today can make a huge difference to a portfolio balance several years out. The potential long-term gains from making those right investments can be huge.
Fortunately, the market provides us with plenty of great options to consider that can provide those potential long-term gains.
Here’s a look at several options to consider adding to your portfolio this month.
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Option #1: The big bank stock with huge appeal
Canada’s big bank stocks are almost always great long-term investments. That’s because they offer a reliable revenue stream, a growing tasty dividend income and plenty of defensive appeal.
Prospective investors in Bank of Nova Scotia (TSX:BNS) will also benefit from the potential long-term gains to be realized from its stellar growth potential.
Scotiabank isn’t the largest of the big banks, but it is the most international. That international presence has fueled growth for Scotiabank, making it an intriguing pick over its big bank peers.
Scotiabank recently announced a shift to that international growth focus, moving away from more volatile Latin American markets and shifting to more mature North American markets.
As an income stock, Scotiabank shines. As of the time of writing, the bank offers a quarterly dividend that yields 5.96%.
For those investors contemplating the potential long-term gains, a $12,000 investment will generate over $700 in income. Prospective investors should also note that Scotiabank has provided annual bumps to that dividend going back years.
Option #2: The big telecom
As juicy as Scotiabank’s dividend is, investors looking for potential long-term gains should consider investing in Telus (TSX:T).
Telus is one of Canada’s big telecoms and not only boasts an insane 7.60% yield and two decades of semi-annual increases. As of the time of writing, a $12,000 investment in the telecom will generate an income of just over $910.
Apart from that generous yield, Telus also offers significant defensive and growth-focused appeal.
As a telecom, Telus generates a reliable and recurring revenue stream from its core subscription-based services. Those services are defensive in nature and have only grown in importance in the time since the pandemic ended.
Turning to growth, Telus differs from its big telecom peers. Specifically, the difference is Telus’s lack of a media segment. While this means that Telus doesn’t generate the ad revenue from a media operation that its peers do, it doesn’t mean that the telecom hasn’t branched out into other areas.
Those other areas include Telus’s growing suite of digital services offerings. The telecom offers those services in specific segments of the market, such as in healthcare and agriculture.
Option #3: Sit back and relax with this REIT
Real estate investment trusts (REITs) are excellent additions to any well-diversified portfolio. One of the reasons for that view is that the potential for long-term gains is off the scale.
REITs generate a reliable and recurring revenue stream backed by a long list of tenants that often spans hundreds of units. This far outweighs the appeal of owning a single rental property.
Even better, REITs don’t come with a mortgage or taxes to worry about either.
And the one REIT for investors who are looking at the potential for long-term gains is Slate Grocery REIT (TSX:SGR.UN).
As the name implies, Slate’s portfolio is focused on grocery stores. Grocers are incredible defensive options to consider, making them lucrative additions to any portfolio.
Slate boasts a portfolio of 120 properties that are located across 24 U.S. states. The tenant list comprises some of the largest names in the sector, but no single tenant has more than 10% of Slate’s portfolio. More importantly, the REIT boasts an occupancy north of 94%.
Where Slate shines is with respect to its distribution. As of the time of writing, Slate offers an attractive 8.13% yield. This means that a $12,000 investment in the REIT will generate a recurring monthly income of just over $80.
Potential for long-term gains cannot be understated
Investing $12,000 into each of the above companies will not provide enough income to retire on. What it will do, however, is provide a source for reinvested dividends to build out that income stream.
In my opinion, one or all of the above should be core holdings in any well-diversified portfolio.
