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“Only buy something that you’d be perfectly happy to hold if the market shut down for 10 years.”

— Warren Buffett

One of the most important things investors can learn from Warren Buffett, is about how they approach their time horizon for an investment into a stock under consideration. Because immediately after buying shares of a given stock, investors will then be able to check on the day-to-day (and even minute-by-minute) market value. Some days the stock market will be up, other days down. These daily fluctuations can often distract from the long-term view. Today, we look at the result of a decade-long holding period for an investor who was considering Waters Corp. (NYSE: WAT) back in 2012, bought the stock, ignored the market’s ups and downs, and simply held through to today.

Start date: 01/24/2012
$10,000

01/24/2012
$37,530

01/21/2022
End date: 01/21/2022
Start price/share: $85.04
End price/share: $319.23
Starting shares: 117.59
Ending shares: 117.59
Dividends reinvested/share: $0.00
Total return: 275.39%
Average annual return: 14.14%
Starting investment: $10,000.00
Ending investment: $37,530.01

The above analysis shows the decade-long investment result worked out quite well, with an annualized rate of return of 14.14%. This would have turned a $10K investment made 10 years ago into $37,530.01 today (as of 01/21/2022). On a total return basis, that’s a result of 275.39% (something to think about: how might WAT shares perform over the next 10 years?). [These numbers were computed with the Dividend Channel DRIP Returns Calculator.]

One more piece of investment wisdom to leave you with:
“Compound interest is the eighth wonder of the world. He who understands it, earns it; he who doesn’t, pays it.” — Albert Einstein