Last Thursday's historic decision by the United Kingdom (UK) to leave the European Union (EU) sent shockwaves through global markets. No asset class, bar gold, was spared as investors were wrong-footed by the surprise outcome leading to the fearful phenomenon of "sell now, ask questions later".
Stocks heavily exposed to European markets bore the brunt of the sell-off, with CYBG PLC CDI 1:1 (ASX: CYB), BT Investment Management Ltd (ASX: BTT) and Henderson Group Plc (ASX: HGG) the biggest losers on the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) (in the last few days) as investors feared Brexit's impact on their respective future earnings.
Even lesser exposed stocks QBE Insurance Group Ltd (ASX: QBE) and Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) slumped as though they were reliant on Britain as their key source of earnings.
The broad based sell-off indicates Brexit contagion is taking hold with rationality going out the window. This kind of market behaviour presents a buying opportunity for the long term investor, in my opinion.
Accordingly, here are two stocks which I believe are largely unaffected by a Brexit, making them good buys amidst the chaos.
InvoCare Limited (ASX: IVC)
InvoCare operates 238 funeral homes throughout Australia and New Zealand under the trading names of White Lady Funerals, Tobin Brothers and Le Pine (amongst others). InvoCare is Australia's only listed funeral services provider with a domestic footprint enabling it to command 31% market share in a segment growing day-by-day (literally).
Importantly, InvoCare's earnings are not reliant on global economics. The key driver for InvoCare's earnings is global mortality rates, which will likely be unaffected by a Brexit.
Therefore, any pullback in share price is a great opportunity to pick up this resilient stock.
Telstra Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLS)
Telstra derives most of its earnings from Australia, thus developments in Europe and the UK should not impact Australia's largest telecommunications carrier. Although a drop in global consumer confidence (brought about by a Brexit) could impact the uptake of new phones and services, Telstra is a defensive stock given customers will still require its essential services of telephony and internet in recessionary times.
Therefore, with management poised to embark on shareholder-friendly capital management activity in August, any further drop in share price makes it a solid buy today.
Foolish takeaway
The full effects of a Brexit will take years to surface as the UK Parliament and EU lawmakers face the tedious task of negotiating an amicable divorce. One certainty is that stock markets will recover once the shock dissipates, with only those companies directly affected by a Brexit facing difficulty (e.g. European banks).
Accordingly, when the share market loses its way, and throws up great buying opportunities like it has for InvoCare and Telstra, investors must seize the opportunity and buy those quality stocks at discounted prices.
