“I buy on the assumption that they could close the market the next day and not reopen it for five years.”
— Warren Buffett
The above quote from Warren Buffett is timeless, and brings into focus the choice about time horizon that any investor should think about before buying a stock they are considering. Behind every stock is an actual business; what will that business look like over a five year period?
Today, let’s look backwards in time to 2017, and take a look at what happened to investors who asked that very question about United Rentals Inc (NYSE: URI), by taking a look at the investment outcome over a five year holding period.
| Start date: | 04/24/2017 |
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| End date: | 04/21/2022 | ||||
| Start price/share: | $113.56 | ||||
| End price/share: | $337.72 | ||||
| Starting shares: | 88.06 | ||||
| Ending shares: | 88.06 | ||||
| Dividends reinvested/share: | $0.00 | ||||
| Total return: | 197.39% | ||||
| Average annual return: | 24.39% | ||||
| Starting investment: | $10,000.00 | ||||
| Ending investment: | $29,744.59 | ||||
The above analysis shows the five year investment result worked out exceptionally well, with an annualized rate of return of 24.39%. This would have turned a $10K investment made 5 years ago into $29,744.59 today (as of 04/21/2022). On a total return basis, that’s a result of 197.39% (something to think about: how might URI shares perform over the next 5 years?). [These numbers were computed with the Dividend Channel DRIP Returns Calculator.]
Here’s one more great investment quote before you go:
“The stock market is filled with individuals who know the price of everything, but the value of nothing.” — Phillip Fisher
