Today's crash reminds me of one of Warren Buffet's most famous sayings "Be fearful when others are greedy. Be greedy when others are fearful".
It's days like today where lots of investors wish that they had some cash to invest. The ALL ORDINARIES (Index: ^AXAO) (ASX: XAO) has fallen by 2.77% so far today. I don't know why investors are suddenly fearful of rising interest rates, as that has been on the cards for a long time.
This might not even be the end of the steep fall, tomorrow could show more declines. February 2018 could be a bad month for stocks. However, there's also a chance that the market has recovered by next week. Who knows what will happen next?
What I do know is that many quality businesses are trading more cheaply today than they were last week, which presents an opportunity to buy at a discounted price.
Here are four shares I'm considering buying thanks to the share price falls:
Magellan Global Trust (ASX: MGG)
The share price is down 1.66% at the time of writing. Its top holdings include shares like Facebook, Alphabet (Google) and Apple. People will continue to Google things on the internet, they will continue using Facebook and they will continue using their iPhones.
I don't think this drop changes the long-term opportunity of the Magellan Trust's holdings or changes the long-term ability of the fund manager. That's why I think it could be worth a buy today. I'd invest $3,000 into this share.
Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Co. Ltd (ASX: SOL)
The share price is down by 3.58% at the time of writing. Soul Patts has been operating for many decades and will continue to operate for many more. It has paid a dividend through wars, recessions and stock crashes and I'm sure it will continue to do so.
Its largest investments are in long-term businesses that will continue to be used by the population no matter what. TPG Telecom Ltd (ASX: TPM) will continue to supply internet bundles to consumers. I'd invest $2,500 into this share.
Greencross Limited (ASX: GXL)
The share price is down by 5.59% at the time of writing. People's pets won't suddenly disappear in a market crash. Pets will continue to need feeding, they will need toys to play with and they will still get sick or injured requiring a visit to the vet.
Demand for pet services will hardly change due to what stock markets are doing. Greencross' growth strategy will remain unchanged regardless of what interest rates are doing around the globe. I'd invest $2,500 into this share.
The share price is down by 1.46% at the time of writing. Arguably, the underlying value of the farms may fall if interest rates rise but the income generated from Rural Fund's tenants will continue to rise thanks to income indexation built into the contracts.
Farmland has been useful for hundreds of years and will likely be useful for a long time to come. I'd invest $2,000 into this share.
Foolish takeaway
You may see that I own these four stocks and write about them regularly. A crash doesn't change my opinion that all four are long-term opportunities and won't affect their day-to-day profits. I think all four are good opportunities after today's crash.
