I'm a very big fan of buy and hold investing and believe it is the best way for investors to grow their wealth.
To demonstrate how successful it can be, I like to pick out a number of popular ASX shares to see how much a single $20,000 investment 10 years ago would be worth today.
This time around I have picked out the three ASX shares that are listed below:
Cleanaway Waste Management Ltd (ASX: CWY)
The Cleanaway share price has been a market beater over the last decade with an average annual return of 11.8%. This has been driven by Cleanaway delivering solid earnings growth over the period and growing into a real force in the waste management industry. This has particularly been the case during the last few years following the successful acquisitions of Toxfree and SKM Recycling. If you had invested $20,000 into its shares in 2010, it would be worth a cool $61,000 today.
Clinuvel Pharmaceuticals Limited (ASX: CUV)
The Clinuvel share price has been a particularly positive performer over the last 10 years. During this time the severe skin disorders-focused biopharmaceutical company's shares have generated an average total return of 26.9% per annum. The majority of these gains have come in the last few years following the successful development of its lead compound, SCENESSE. This is a drug which is currently treating erythropoietic protoporphyria and could soon be expanded to treat vitiligo. A $20,000 investment into Clinuvel's shares 10 years ago would be worth a sizeable $217,000 today.
CSL Limited (ASX: CSL)
The CSL share price has certainly not disappointed over the last 10 years. Thanks largely to its high level of investment in research and development, CSL now has an extremely lucrative portfolio of therapies. It also has a growing vaccine business following its acquisition of the Novartis global influenza vaccine segment. Combined, they have underpinned consistently strong sales and earnings growth. This has resulted in CSL's shares providing investors with an average return of 25.1% per annum over the last decade. Which means that $20,000 invested in its shares in 2010 would now be worth $188,000 today.
