Some investing strategies can be overly complicated and lead to buying stocks in companies that investors don't really understand or don't have much interest in.
To help avoid such a situation, consider buying shares of Microsoft (MSFT 0.59%) and Airbnb (ABNB -0.50%). These two companies have straightforward businesses that should end up being great long-term bets. If you have $1,000 available that isn't needed to pay bills, reduce short-term debt, or bolster an emergency fund, you might want to put it toward buying stock in either of these two simple stocks.
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1. Microsoft is stable and growing
The company's cloud computing, gaming, and software businesses are all well known and easy to understand. Microsoft's cloud computing services are one of the company's biggest opportunities and are second only to Amazon in market share.
Microsoft's intelligent cloud sales increased 20% to $20.3 billion in the third quarter (which ended on Sept. 30), and there's more room for growth. Spending in the personal cloud computing market will reach an estimated $592 billion in 2023, up from $490 billion in 2022, according to Gartner.
In addition to cloud computing, Microsoft is a huge force in the gaming market, and its bid to purchase Activision Blizzard could give the company an even bigger slice of the $170 billion global gaming market if the deal goes through.
While tech stocks have fallen significantly this year, a quick glance at Microsoft's balance sheet should put investors' worries at ease. The company generated $21.5 billion in operating income in the most recent quarter, up 6% year over year.
Making Microsoft look like an even sweeter deal right now is the fact that the company's price-to-earnings ratio is down to 27 at the moment (from 38 this time last year) and the company just increased its dividend by 10% in the third quarter.
2. Airbnb is profitable and tapping into travel demand
Airbnb is another company with a business that's easy to understand. The company's platform allows users to rent places to stay and book experiences, all from its easy-to-use website and app. The travel industry has been booming since COVID-19 restrictions were eliminated in most places around the globe -- and Airbnb's business is accelerating along with it.
The company's revenue soared 29% year over year in the third quarter (which ended on Sept. 30) to $2.9 billion. Additionally, the number of nights and experiences booked on the platform spiked 25% in the quarter to nearly 100 million.
Uncertainty about the economy has some investors concerned about Airbnb right now, but despite those fears, Airbnb had the "most profitable quarter ever despite geopolitical and macroeconomic headwinds," management said in its latest shareholder letter.
Airbnb's net income was up a very impressive 46% year over year to $1.2 billion in the third quarter, and the company generated $960 million in free cash flow.
All of that growth helped prove Airbnb's resilience as it has come out of the height of the pandemic.
And with Airbnb's shares trading at 41 times the company's earnings, compared with 150 just 12 months ago, the stock is relatively cheaper than in the recent past.
Invest with patience
Microsoft and Airbnb both have lots of potential for long-term investors, but you'll likely have to be patient as the market continues to process inflation and macroeconomic concerns.
But with both their unique opportunities in their respective markets, Microsoft and Airbnb have a good chance of being long-term winners for patient investors.
