With the general mood among investors being one of caution following a disappointing year, now could be a great time to buy for the long term.
Certainly, the global economy is not without challenges, and investing in shares is not without risk.
However, there are a number of high quality stocks that are currently trading at bargain basement prices. Furthermore, they could have improving bottom lines next year. Here are three prime examples.
BHP Billiton Limited
Having fallen by 14% since the turn of the year, shares in BHP Billiton Limited (ASX: BHP) now offer even better value for money than they did 11 months ago.
Certainly, the falling price of commodities including oil and iron ore has hurt the company's bottom line, but BHP remains highly diversified and, with a very low cost curve, may be better suited to life with low commodity prices than many of its peers. This, alongside a strategy to maintain high levels of production, could see BHP increase its overall market share over the medium term, which would be highly beneficial to the future profitability of the firm.
With shares in BHP trading on a P/E ratio of just 13.2 and earnings being expected to grow by 9.6% next year, now could be a great time to buy a slice of the company.
Oil Search Limited
It's a similar story at Oil Search Limited (ASX: OSH), with the falling price of oil inevitably hurting sentiment in the stock during the course of 2014. However, with the potential for a ramp up in production from the PNG LNG project (in which Oil Search is a key partner), a depressed oil price may not necessarily mean a lacklustre bottom line.
Indeed, Oil Search's earnings are expected to grow by 60% in 2015, with the company's production output expected to increase up to four-fold over the next two years. And, with shares in the company trading on a P/E ratio of 22.2, this means that their PEG ratio is a supremely attractive 0.25.
As a result, Oil Search could post strong gains in 2015 and could be worth buying at the present time.
National Australia Bank Ltd.
It's not just resource plays that could deliver excellent earnings growth in 2015. Indeed, National Australia Bank Ltd. (ASX: NAB) is expected to grow its bottom line at an annualised rate of 16.6% over the next two years.
Furthermore, with the UK economy continuing to deliver excellent growth, NAB's exposure to the UK has the potential to perform much better than it has done in previous years. This could be in the form of fewer bad loans, as well as more demand for financial products, and so the performance of NAB's Clydesdale and Yorkshire Bank subsidiaries could surprise on the upside over the medium term.
With shares in NAB trading on a PEG ratio of just 0.87, they seem to offer excellent growth prospects at a reasonable price. And, with a fully franked yield of 6.3%, they place a firm 'tick' in the income box too and could prove to be a top performer next year.
