Every now and again, top-quality Australian stocks experience a significant share price dip. These occasions can be rare. But when they do happen, it can be a fleeting opportunity to pick up shares of a lucrative investment. We could be seeing this in action as we speak with Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Co Ltd (ASX: SOL).
Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Co, or Soul Patts for short, is an investing house. Unlike most Australian stocks, which produce goods or services for consumers, Soul Patts instead manages an underlying portfolio of investments on behalf of its shareholders.
These investments are highly diversified. There are a few ASX shares that the company owns major stakes in, including TPG Telecom Ltd (ASX: TPG) and New Hope Corporation Ltd (ASX: NHC). There's also a broader portfolio of blue-chip stocks that Soul Patts inherited from the acquisition of the old Milton Corporation a few years ago.
In addition to this impressive share portfolio, Soul Patts also invests in a range of other assets. These include private credit, venture capital, and other unlisted assets. That's in addition to the property portfolio and construction materials manufacturing business that Soul Patts acquired with its acquisition of Brickworks last year.
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Soul Patts is pure long-term perfection in an Australian stock
So we can be sure that a Soul Patts investment is an inherently diversified one. But it has historically also been an incredibly lucrative one. Last year, the company confirmed that its investors had enjoyed an average total return (share price growth plus dividends) of 13.7% per annum over the 25 years to 23 September 2025. That beat out the broader market by over 5% per annum.
The company also outperformed over 1, 3, 5, 10, and 15-year periods, too. Additionally, Soul Patts shareholders have enjoyed the longest streak of annual dividend increases on the ASX from this company. Soul Patts has raised its annual dividend like clockwork every year since 1998. That included 2025.
Putting all of this together, I think we can conclude that this company is pure perfection for long-term investors.
Yet this company has just come off a fairly dramatic share price plunge. Back in September of last year, Soul Patts shares were riding high on the back of the Brickworks acquisition. The company hit a new all-time record of $45.14 that month. But ever since, this exuberance has been fading. At the current (at the time of writing anyway) price of $38.22, the company is a significant 14.5% or so down from that record high. Back in December, Soul Patts went under $35 a share, which was more than 21% below that height.
Despite the recent recovery from that low, today's pricing could be a good entry point for investors looking for a company they can buy and hold forever.
