Want to have a stress-free life? There aren't many ASX shares that can do that for your portfolio.
Indeed, shares are volatile. They are meant to be fairly volatile. No-one can control what share prices do except for the buyers and sellers each day. However, the below three shares have proven to be long-term winners and could keep being solid performers for a long time to come:
CSL Limited (ASX: CSL)
With the CSL share price now above $300 I think it's fair to say that we can rely on CSL to deliver growth. The healthcare giant has an impressive record of investing its large research & development funding into the right areas to achieve good financial results in the future.
CSL's earnings continues to grow as its international reach and product range expands. Growth in China could be the next stage of expansion for the company that could become the ASX's biggest business sooner rather than later. Being a healthcare share should mean that demand for its products remains fairly consistent and growing whether the economy is booming or not.
Whilst the dividend yield is now low, CSL has a strong history of growing its dividend each year since the GFC.
Argo Investments Limited (ASX: ARG)
Argo is one of the country's oldest listed investment companies (LICs). It was founded in 1946 and, unlike some of its old LIC peers, it is steadily growing its dividend with a higher focus on businesses that are growing.
It has a diversified portfolio of shares such as Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG), CSL, BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP), Australian United Investment Company Ltd (ASX: AUI) and Ramsay Health Care Limited (ASX: RHC). This diversification makes Argo more defensive and it's able to shift its holdings as it sees fit.
Argo has a long-term investment focus and is delivering sustainable returns for its investors. It currently has a grossed-up dividend yield of 5.3%.
InvoCare Limited (ASX: IVC)
InvoCare is the largest funeral operator in Australia and New Zealand with a market share of around a third. It's morbid, but sadly a certain number of people pass away each year which gives InvoCare a certain level of earnings.
Not only are its earnings defensive, but they're exposed to an ultra-long-term tailwind. Death volumes are expected to grow by 1.4% per annum between 2016 to 2025 and then increase by 2.2% per annum from 2025 to 2050 because of the ageing population. There aren't many shares out there that can confidently say that demand for their products is likely to grow for at least 30 years.
InvoCare is finishing off the renovations at many of its locations which will hopefully materially boost revenue per funeral.
Foolish takeaway
Each share offers something a bit different. CSL definitely has star quality, it could be one of the best businesses in the world. Argo is a steady investment whilst InvoCare can expect long-term growth for years to come. Of the three, I'd probably pick InvoCare at today's prices.
