Do you have $3,000 to invest in shares this month? Below I'll share my top three picks in BetaShares NASDAQ 100 ETF (ASX: NDQ), CSL Limited (ASX: CSL) and Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) shares to either add to or help you start your share portfolio.
I believe that shares are a much better alternative to keeping your money in a savings account or term deposit. The interest earned there often doesn't even cover inflation.
BetaShares NASDAQ shares
The NASDAQ 100 ETF is comprised of the 100 largest, non-financial businesses on the US NASDAQ exchange.
Australia's tech sector is tiny compared to the US market. So, purchasing this exchange-traded fund (ETF) gives you instant diversification to a much larger tech market.
It is home to some of the world's most successful businesses with a high proportion being larger companies. This includes tech giants Amazon, Facebook, Microsoft, Google, Netflix and Apple.
Many of these companies are world-leading brands, have strong positions in market niches and strong cash flow.
A significant proportion has also seen share price growth over the past 5 years well above a 10% average per annum. I believe that many will continue to grow strongly over the next decade. This, I feel, is likely to lead to above-average returns for this ETF, well into the next decade.
CSL shares
CSL has become a global market leader in blood plasma research and disease treatment. It now reaches more than 60 countries.
Its strong growth over the past few years has been driven by high investment in research and development to create new products.
CSL has invested significantly in research and development over the last 5 years. This creates a pipeline of new products. In FY19 alone it invested $832 million.
I believe that CSL is well-positioned to deliver strong earnings growth over the next 5 to 10 years. This I feel, is likely to lead to continued strong share price growth.
Macquarie Group shares
Macquarie is a global financial services giant, headquartered in Australia, with a core focus on international investment banking.
I think it is a good option if you want to gain some exposure to the financial services sector. I also believe that it is a better option than our 4 big banks.
Its business model has evolved significantly over the last decade. Macquarie has now become a more balanced and diversified business. Whereas, in the past, it was too heavily focused on a small product set. For this reason, it got into trouble during the global financial crisis.
Macquarie also currently pays an attractive trailing annual dividend yield of 3.6%.
