It's a question I hear all the time -- one I've dedicated the past two decades of my life to studying...
"What's the No.1 thing to look for in a company if you want truly life-changing, long-term investment returns?"
The body of research that attempts to answer this ONE QUESTION is vast. There's no shortage of people who think they know the answer. But few actually do.
This explains why achieving astounding investment returns -- beating the market for years over your lifetime -- is the exception, rather than the norm.
What I've discovered may surprise you. It surprised me at first...
Because it's a simple, often overlooked trait that virtually all of the greatest investments in history possess.
And if you can find just three to five companies that have this single characteristic -- and hold them in your portfolio for five, 10, or hopefully 15 or 20 years or more -- you and your family can achieve and maintain the complete financial freedom to live the lives you want to.
That's why I seek this ONE INDICATOR in every single company I consider buying for the Everlasting Portfolio inside of Motley Fool ONE...
If you've heard of Motley Fool ONE, you know it's our premier, all-access service designed to maximize your wealth over the long term, while minimizing the amount of time, effort, money, and anxiety required from you in the short term...
Which brings me to an exciting announcement. Over the next few weeks, I'm going to pull back the curtain for you and show you how to identify the world's greatest investments... I'm also going to open up the door to Motley Fool ONE so you can have a look around.
We'll begin by examining the powerful indicator I mentioned. I discovered it in a profoundly important book called The Outsiders.
This is a book I've urged CEOs of some of my favorite companies to read. I believe it can transform your investment approach for the better.
So what's the book all about? What's the No. 1 trait to look for?
Expert capital allocation.
Now that might sound boring or obvious. But the book details why companies like Berkshire Hathaway or Amazon.com have rung up such unbelievable returns. It can mean the difference between building a fortress of investing wealth and simply just bobbing along in your financial life.
As The Outsiders shows us, by expertly allocating capital, eight largely unknown CEOs led their firms to outperformance of the S&P 500 by a factor of TWENTY over their respective tenures.
That means, on average, an investment of $10,000 with each of these CEOs would have been worth over $1.5 million 25 years later.
Perhaps even more inspiring than their performance is the fact that these are the kinds of CEOs who don't chase hot trends... who don't buy back stock to balance out options grants... and who don't build extravagant corporate headquarters.
Instead, they treat every single dollar they spend as an investment crucial to the long-term success of their business. What's more, they're humble... unassuming... and masterfully smart about their business. They shun Wall Street... the financial media... and limelight of any kind.
And in a corporate culture that features too many brash leaders... reckless spending... and short-term thinking, these executives have stood out as genuine misfits and true outsiders.
I had the immense pleasure (and good fortune!) of coming across one such outsider back in the fall of 2003...
I had just recommended buying shares of a little-known commercial oven manufacturer he was leading. The stock was selling for about $3 per share on a split-adjusted basis...
By the time I re-recommended the stock in January 2005, it had jumped to around $8 per share. And when I recommended it for a third time in September 2005, it had shot all the way up to $11 per share...
Today, Middleby is still unknown to most investors -- and its outsider CEO, Selim Bassoul, is still at the helm. And the stock trades at over $108 per share today. Up more than 30 times since my initial recommendation.
Given what I've told you so far, it should come as no surprise that over Selim's 14-year tenure as CEO, Middleby's stock has climbed more than 10,800%!
Nor should it surprise you to hear I've purchased Middleby over and over again for the Everlasting Portfolio inside of Motley Fool ONE. It's one of our largest holdings and has solidly contributed to our 97% total returns since 2012, smashing the S&P 500 over that period!
Here's the upshot of all of this for you.
On Thursday, March 19, we will open up Motley Fool ONE to new members. And in the days leading up to that, we'll introduce you to a handful of "outsider" business leaders, and potential blockbuster investments...
You'll meet corporate contrarians and world-class leaders like Selim Bassoul... you'll see firsthand our plans to beat the market with less risk over the next five years... and you'll get the full rundown on three "outsider" stocks I'm considering for my next major Everlasting Portfolio purchase...
You'll also discover some major new plans I'll begin to deploy in the Everlasting Portfolio beginning in April... such as the ability to set ourselves up to buy our shares cheaper than the rest of the market, take steps to protect ourselves against sudden downturns, generate income from otherwise lagging investments, and much more...
And here's the best part: All these timely wealth-building insights and actionable information is all 100% free, no strings attached!
That's why I hope you'll take a moment to fill out our short Motley Fool ONE "early acceptance" application, which will entitle you to an exclusive discount and our very best deal, should you decide to join me in ONE...
And again, there's no obligation or commitment associated with any of this. It's simply our way of introducing you to Motley Fool ONE, and our most powerful and coveted investing strategies, leading up to the new-member opening on Thursday morning, March 19...
Click here to learn more and step inside Motley Fool ONE -- 100% free, no strings attached!
