A new research paper has examined all 29,078 US stocks that have existed since 1926 and identified the top 30 performers of all time.

These stocks, some of them household names, have generated enormous wealth for those who purchased even just one share of the company and held on to it for nearly 100 years.

Of course, identifying the 30 best-performing stocks for the next 100 years is nearly impossible, as the paper's author points out.

"The majority (51.6%) of these stocks had negative cumulative returns," finance professor Hendrik Bessembinder of Arizona State University wrote.

But with a healthy dose of luck, $1 invested in 1926 would have been worth $2.67 million at the end of 2023, assuming it was invested in the right company.

Bessembinder also observed that the 30 best-performing stocks delivered consistently modest annualized gains, reinforcing the slow and steady mantra championed by long-term investors.

"Annualized compound returns to these top performers relatively were modest, averaging 13.47% across the top seventeen stocks, thereby affirming the importance of 'time in the market," Bessembinder wrote.

From soda to cigarettes to computers and airplanes, these are the 30 top-performing US stocks since 1926, according to the paper, which assumed that dividends were reinvested.

1. Emerson Electric

Ticker: EMR
Return of $1 invested: $24,098
Investment date: September 5, 1944 - December 29, 2023

1. Walgreens Boots Alliance

Ticker: WBA
Return of $1 invested: $27,053
Investment date: February 15, 1934 - December 29, 2023

1. Kroger

Ticker: KR
Return of $1 invested: $28,345
Investment date: January 26, 1928 - December 29, 2023

1. Pfizer

Ticker: PFE
Return of $1 invested: $28,990
Investment date: January 17, 1944 - December 29, 2023

1. Tootsie Roll

Ticker: TR
Return of $1 invested: $34,401
Investment date: December 31, 1925 - December 29, 2023

1. Bristol-Myers Squibb

Ticker: BMY
Return of $1 invested: $34,867
Investment date: September 8, 1933 - December 29, 2023

1. Caterpillar

Ticker: CAT
Return of $1 invested: $36,903
Investment date: December 2, 1929 - December 29, 2023

1. FMC Corp

Ticker: FMC
Return of $1 invested: $37,001
Investment date: April 22, 1931 - December 29, 2023

1. Trane Technologies

Ticker: TT
Return of $1 invested: $39,238
Investment date: December 31, 1925 - December 29, 2023

1. Northrop Grumman

Ticker: NOC
Return of $1 invested: $39,495
Investment date: December 10, 1951 - December 29, 2023

1. Exxon Mobil

Ticker: XOM
Return of $1 invested: $40,273
Investment date: December 31, 1925 - December 29, 2023

1. UST Inc

Ticker: Delisted after acquisition by Altria in 2009
Return of $1 invested: $43,963
Investment date: December 31, 1925 - January 5, 2009

1. CVS Health

Ticker: CVS
Return of $1 invested: $46,939
Investment date: September 27, 1928 - December 29, 2023

1. Archer Daniels Midland

Ticker: ADM
Return of $1 invested: $51,811
Investment date: December 31, 1925 - December 29, 2023

1. Johnson & Johnson

Ticker: JNJ
Return of $1 invested: $54,281
Investment date: September 25, 1944 - December 29, 2023

1. Wyeth

Ticker: Delisted after acquisition by Pfizer in 2009
Return of $1 invested: $57,024
Investment date: April 29, 1926 - October 15, 2009

1. Hershey

Ticker: H
Return of $1 invested: $69,099
Investment date: December 1, 1927 - December 29, 2023

1. Deere & Co

   

Ticker: DE
Return of $1 invested: $69,886
Investment date: June 29, 1933 - December 29, 2023

1. Universal Corp

   

Ticker: UVV
Return of $1 invested: $70,318
Investment date: November 11, 1927 - December 29, 2023

1. Abbott Laboratories

Ticker: ABT
Return of $1 invested: $78,038
Investment date: March 1, 1937 - December 29, 2023

1. Pepsico

Ticker: PEP
Return of $1 invested: $86,360
Investment date: December 31, 1925 - December 29, 2023

1. Coca-Cola

Ticker: KO
Return of $1 invested: $123,724
Investment date: December 31, 1925 - December 29, 2023

1. S&P Global

Ticker: SPGI
Return of $1 invested: $128,787
Investment date: February 14, 1929 - December 29, 2023

1. Eaton

Ticker: ETN
Return of $1 invested: $151,173
Investment date: December 31, 1925 - December 29, 2023

1. International Business Machines

Ticker: IBM
Return of $1 invested: $175,437
Investment date: December 31, 1925- December 29, 2023

5. Boeing

Ticker: BA
Return of $1 invested: $212,206
Investment date: September 5, 1934 - December 29, 2023

1. General Dynamics

Ticker: GD
Return of $1 invested: $220,850
Investment date: January 28, 1926 - December 29, 2023

1. Kansas City Southern

Ticker: Delisted after 2021 acquisition by Canadian Pacific
Return of $1 invested: $361,757
Investment date: December 31, 1925 - December 13, 2021

1. Vulcan Materials

Ticker: VMC
Return of $1 invested: $393,492
Investment date: December 31, 1925- December 29, 2023

1. Altria Group

Ticker: MO
Return of $1 invested: $2,655,290
Investment date: December 31, 1925 - December 29, 2023

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