Here at The Motley Fool, April 1 might just be our favorite day of the year. And virtually every year since our company launched in 1993 we've run a joke for April Fool's. 

Our very first April Fool's joke was Zeigletics, a made-up penny stock to show the perils of pump-and-dump schemes.

A few years later, during the heart of the dot-com bubble, we unveiled eMeringue, "the Internet's #1 meringue delivery service." 

Our past jokes were opportunities to showcase the importance of focusing on the long term, staying disciplined as investors, and avoiding getting caught up in short-term headlines.

This April 1st, however, we wanted to do something different. It's been a wild year for the stock market and we're still in the midst of the pandemic.

So instead of running a joke, we’re putting together a Foolish portfolio to help navigate the market both today and for the next five years -- and we’re giving it away FREE to the entire Motley Fool community! 

Within the past two months we've seen the stocks of many of our favorite businesses pull back from recent highs. We know many people are more nervous about investing today than they were even in the early days of the pandemic. And we believe one of the most important contributors to long-term investing success is to keep investing through turbulent times. 

That's why today -- instead of our usual April Fool's joke -- you’ll be getting our first-ever April Fool’s Portfolio aimed at helping Foolish investors navigate an uncertain market.

This special real-money portfolio will feature top recommendations chosen from our premium investing team. And we are making it available to each and every Fool around the world -- for free!

We want to demonstrate why we think people should be excited to invest for the long term -- with a clear game plan to win -- despite recent stock market volatility. 

In the spirit of our company mission to help make the world smarter, happier, and richer, here is what we're doing for our April Fool's Portfolio.

The Motley Fool will invest $50,000 of its own capital in this portfolio. We are backing this portfolio with Motley Fool capital to highlight exactly how we're approaching allocation, balancing stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETFs), and building a portfolio we believe is positioned to make money over the next five years. 

Starting with what's near and dear to us Fools...public stocks. Looking through some of our highest-conviction companies across our investing team, we've identified a handful of stocks we think are positioned well to collectively make money over the next five years.

Our portfolio will also highlight ETFs that we think can work alongside our stocks to provide a high-potential investment experience.

To dive deeper into the key investing principles behind the April Fool's Portfolio, we have a lot of guidance planned for the month ahead:

  • A full overview of the stocks, ETFs, and allocations of the April Fool's Portfolio.
  • An inside look at some of our Foolish investing tools and data that guide how we build this portfolio. 
  • Foolish insights into picking stocks, asset allocation, investing mindset, building a balanced portfolio, and more.

You can expect weekly updates on our April Fool's Portfolio throughout the month of April. If you have friends or family members who are looking for guidance on how to invest right now, you can point them right here to see a real-money Foolish portfolio built in full view, absolutely free.

We will begin unveiling our April Fool's Portfolio in its entirety next week so be sure to watch this space! You can expect an update each week throughout the month, announcing further investments in this exciting portfolio.

To recap: 

  • April Fool's Portfolio goal: Make money over the next five years.
  • A combination of Fool-favorite stocks and ETFs.
  • Guidance on allocation and maintaining a cash position. 
  • Insights into the data and tools that guide The Motley Fool's advice recommendations for investors.
  • For timely updates on the portfolio, enter your email address below! Or check back here throughout April to see the latest with the portfolio. 

Fools, this is a unique time in the market and a unique time for our company. And that's why we're so excited to be able to share this special portfolio with each and every one of you. 

We look forward to making April a month full of fun, Foolishness, and potential financial growth.

Fool on!

P.S. Please secure your access to this real-money portfolio here or bookmark http://fool.com/free. 

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