2 Roaring Stocks to Hold for the Next 20 Years

The ever-evolving nature of the tech industry has made it one of the best places to find solid growth stocks you can hold for decades. While the sector can be volatile at times -- macroeconomic headwinds led the Nasdaq-100 Technology Sector index to plunge 40% last year -- those who held on saw these stocks start to rise again in 2023. 

Since the start of the year, the potential of high-growth industries, such as artificial intelligence (AI) and virtual/augmented reality (VR/AR), has sent a number of stocks trending up. The companies in these markets are effectively building the future, making their stocks excellent investments to hold indefinitely. 

Here are two roaring stocks to hold for the next 20 years. 

Apple

Apple (AAPL -0.57%) shares have risen 16% since Jan. 1, with reports the company plans to release a mixed-reality headset this year, rallying investors. The growth is consistent with the company's long-term development, which has seen its stock rise 232% in the last five years and 887% in the last decade.

The tech giant's expected venture into VR and AR is a compelling move for its future for two reasons: first, the lucrative long-term potential of the markets and, second, Apple's past success when entering new industries. 

According to Grand View Research, the virtual-reality market was worth $21.8 billion in 2021 and is projected to expand at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 15% through 2030. Meanwhile, the augmented reality market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 40.9% in the same period after being valued at $25.3 billion in 2021.

As a result, Apple has much to gain by introducing its own VR/AR device.

A Bloomberg report in late January stated that Apple's coming headset will feature VR and AR capabilities alongside an iOS-like interface, differentiating it from other popular headsets, such as the Meta Quest 2 and Sony's PlayStation VR 2, which are exclusively VR.

Moreover, Apple's past has given it a reputation for being uniquely talented at entering new markets. After introducing its custom versions, the company quickly rose to dominance in industries such as smartphones, tablets, Bluetooth headphones, and smartwatches.

In fact, the first AirPods were launched in 2016, and by 2019, the headphones' $8 billion in yearly revenue meant, as a stand-alone business, it would have ranked No. 384 on the Fortune 500.

Consistent long-term growth alongside a venture into a lucrative market makes Apple's stock a stellar buy to hold for the next 20 years.

Advanced Micro Devices

Since Jan. 1, shares of AMD (AMD 0.69%) have risen 27% as Wall Street grows optimistic about the company's prospects in data centers and artificial intelligence. After a challenging 2022, when the stock plunged 55%, the start of a recovery is promising for its future. 

AMD suffered in 2022 from steep declines in the PC market. However, the company continues to offer substantial long-term gains, with its stock up 615% over the last five years and over 3,000% in the last 10 years.  AMD's stellar growth has come as its custom-designed computing components, such as processors and graphics processing units (GPUs), have become crucial to several high-growth industries.

Markets like cloud computing and artificial intelligence (AI) are actively turning to companies like AMD to power their platforms. As a result, AMD's stock will likely flourish over the next 20 years as these industries continue developing. 

The AI market was valued at $137 billion in 2022 and is forecast to develop at a CAGR of 37.3% until at least 2030. Meanwhile, according to research from TrendForce, the AI program ChatGPT is expected to increase demand for GPUs from 20,000 in 2020 to 30,000. Nvidia is the primary GPU supplier for ChatGPT. However, numerous other companies are working on competing programs to the advanced chatbot, which could substantially increase sales for AMD.

AMD's stock has consistently risen since the start of 2023 after providing stellar growth over the last five and 10 years. The company's hardware gives it solid positions in multiple high-growth markets, making its stock an excellent investment to hold indefinitely.