When it comes to buy and hold investing, I believe the S&P/ASX 200 Info Tech (Index: ^AXIJ) (ASX: XIJ) is a great place to start for ideas.
In my opinion the information technology sector is home to a great number of companies with the potential to grow significantly over the next few years.
Three quality shares which I'm looking closely at are listed below:
The SEEK Limited (ASX: SEK) share price may be up around 16% year-to-date, but I don't believe it is too late for buy and hold investors to pick up shares. Although the growth of its Australian business may be slowing, thanks to its growing presence internationally I think there is still significant growth ahead for the job listings company. Its China-based Zhaopin business is the real star of the show in my opinion. Zhaopin recently delivered its tenth consecutive quarter of 20%+ growth in both unique hirers and online revenue.
The WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC) share price has been a huge mover in the last 12 months, gaining over 46%. Whilst it does now trade on a sky-high earnings multiple, so far it is living up to the market's high expectations. The cloud-based supply chain management software provider recently reported a 361% jump in half-year net profit to $14.4 million. With over 6,000 logistics companies using its CargoWise software, I believe it has become an integral part of the logistics industry.
The XERO FPO NZX (ASX: XRO) share price recently rocketed to a 52-week high. The catalyst for this was an announcement that the cloud-based accounting software provider had broken through the one million subscriber mark. Whilst this is an incredible achievement, I think it is only scratching at the surface of a much larger global opportunity. The majority of the company's sales currently come from the Australia and New Zealand markets, but in the future I believe its international segment will easily become its biggest earner.
