“Someone’s sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago.”
— 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 two-decade holding period for an investor who was considering Autodesk Inc (NASD: ADSK) back in 2005, bought the stock, ignored the market’s ups and downs, and simply held through to today.
| Start date: | 09/06/2005 |
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| End date: | 09/03/2025 | ||||
| Start price/share: | $43.44 | ||||
| End price/share: | $317.51 | ||||
| Starting shares: | 230.20 | ||||
| Ending shares: | 230.20 | ||||
| Dividends reinvested/share: | $0.00 | ||||
| Total return: | 630.92% | ||||
| Average annual return: | 10.45% | ||||
| Starting investment: | $10,000.00 | ||||
| Ending investment: | $73,038.35 | ||||
The above analysis shows the two-decade investment result worked out quite well, with an annualized rate of return of 10.45%. This would have turned a $10K investment made 20 years ago into $73,038.35 today (as of 09/03/2025). On a total return basis, that’s a result of 630.92% (something to think about: how might ADSK shares perform over the next 20 years?). [These numbers were computed with the Dividend Channel DRIP Returns Calculator.]
One more investment quote to leave you with:
“Every once in a while, the market does something so stupid it takes your breath away.” — Jim Cramer
