May 2026 Buy-and-Hold Picks: Best Stocks to Buy Now,
You may invest in hundreds of publicly listed firms, not to mention the various exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and mutual funds you can purchase. It’s no wonder so many investors don’t know where to start. The stock market has been erratic so far in 2026 amid concerns over the Iran dispute, trade uncertainties, and a faltering economy. The S&P 500 is near an all-time high, and numerous equities appear very attractive for long-term investors.
But which equities are the best to purchase in May 2026? I can’t predict the future to tell you which stocks will perform best, but I’ve attempted to do the next best thing. In this post, I’m going to go over five stocks that I believe might be excellent buys for long-term investors looking to put their money to work.
Why these 5?
- The best stocks to buy now will depend on your unique financial situation. Find out where you stand with our guide to investing in stocks. It guides you through topics such as building an emergency fund, asset allocation, and selecting the right stocks.
- I prefer these equities as long-term investments, even in the event of crashes or downturns in the market. I need more information on what they will do over the following weeks or months. Indeed, if inflation were to suddenly jump higher, trade tensions were to increase, or the U.S. were to enter a serious recession, it is highly likely that most, if not all, of them would decrease shortly thereafter.
- The list below does not aim to be a completely diversified portfolio, but I did try to include some diversity. These are my most convincing long-term stock picks right now. To diversify your assets, the best option is to make the heart of your portfolio a fund such as the Vanguard Total World Stock Index Fund ETF (VT +0.79%) or the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO +0.73%).
Top 5 stocks to buy and hold:
- Airbnb
- MercadoLibre
- Apple
- CrowdStrike
- Intuitive Surgical
Pitches for each stock
1. Airbnb
Few startups have disrupted an entire sector as successfully as Airbnb (ABNB +1.37%). Founded in 2007 on a handful of air mattresses on the co-founders’ floors (hence the business name), Uber has grown into a leader in transforming how millions of people think about vacation accommodations.
Airbnb has well over 5 million hosts and more than 8 million homes and activities listed on its site. Well over 156 million nights and experiences were booked on Airbnb’s platform in the first quarter of 2026, with a total booking value of more than $29 billion, up 19% year-over-year.
Airbnb is huge and becoming bigger. It’s also quite lucrative. The company generated $4.5 billion in free cash flow and a 36% FCF margin in the last 12 months.
Looking ahead, Airbnb has $12.1 billion in cash and short-term investments on its balance sheet. And it still has great development potential.
The total market potential for this sector is in the trillions of dollars and includes both short- and long-term stays and experiences. Management also seems to believe the stock’s value does not reflect the company’s long-term prospects, given its relatively aggressive pace of share repurchases.
2. MercadoLibre
MercadoLibre (MELI –12.90%) is one of my favourite long-term stock bets in the market, and it’s sometimes called the ‘Amazon of Latin America’ for a reason. The firm runs an e-commerce platform with a strong presence in several of the region’s most populated countries, including Brazil and Argentina.
But there’s so much more to MercadoLibre. It runs a fast-growing payments platform, Mercado Pago; a logistics service, Mercado Envios; a business finance platform; and more.
The marketplace generated $19 billion in goods volume in the first quarter of 2026, up 42 per cent from the first quarter of 2025. Mercado Pago handles almost $350 billion in annualised payment volume, with more than three-quarters of it originating from outside its e-commerce platform.
Both key areas of the company are growing quickly. And let’s not forget Mercado Crédito, the company’s new and fast-growing (and very successful) loan arm. Mercado Crédito has $14.6 billion in outstanding loan amounts.
MercadoLibre isn’t just the Amazon of Latin America — it’s the Amazon, PayPal, Block (XYZ +7.81%) (owner of Square and Cash App), Shopify, and more, all in one. And it’s considerably earlier in its development.” As the e-commerce and financial scene in Latin America changes in the following years, MercadoLibre might be a big long-term winner.
3. Apple
Apple (AAPL +1.88%) is a firm that requires no introduction for most people. It’s the world’s biggest consumer electronics firm, and with devices like the iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, the Mac range of PCs and laptops, and more, it has established an ecosystem of goods utilised by a very dedicated customer base.
The latest data give no reason to think demand is tapering off. Apple’s iPhone sales alone topped $85 billion in the Christmas quarter of 2025, a demand level management characterised as “staggering”.
Apple’s other noteworthy division is the Services segment, which is the corporation’s fastest-growing business (and a high-margin income source). A few examples include sales on the App Store and Apple Music subscriptions.
4. CrowdStrike
Every week, it seems there is another high-profile security compromise. And the need for cybersecurity solutions is surely not fading. And that’s particularly true when it comes to cloud security.” CrowdStrike (CRWD +4.00%) is leading the push to keep data safe on the cloud. This is a best-in-breed cybersecurity firm with a compelling platform.
CrowdStrike gathers security data from a large number of customers, analyses it, and then uses it to automate security across its network. This makes the platform very efficient at identifying the most recent threats. The effectiveness of CrowdStrike’s solutions (known as its Falcon platform) increases with the number of users. Its competitive edge over rivals lies in its usage of crowdsourced threat data and its dominant market share.
It’s worth noting that many investors are concerned about the impact of AI disruption on CrowdStrike. For example, as agentic AI technology advances, might it render cybersecurity systems more susceptible to threats? But AI represents the largest opportunity for management.
CrowdStrike’s growth has been astounding, with more than $5 billion in yearly recurring revenue and an 80% subscription gross margin, but its success might be only the start. The firm estimates its current addressable market at $149 billion in potential revenue; it anticipates growing to $325 billion by 2030, more than quadruple the current figure.
5. Intuitive Surgical
Robot surgery usually trumps unsteady human hands. That broad concept hasn’t altered much since I first spotted Intuitive Surgical (ISRG: -0.51%) shares in 2005. The da Vinci Surgical System is the industry leader, and the “razor and blades” business model enables Intuitive to generate an ongoing income stream.
Intuitive Surgical announced a 23% revenue increase year over year in the first quarter of 2026, driven by 17% growth in da Vinci operations completed. Intuitive Surgical is a leader in its field, with around 80% of the worldwide market share.
Its suits surgical systems are being adopted, and the number of supported operations is increasing over time, so it has plenty of room to grow. grow. This trend is especially true in many overseas countries, where the advent of robot-assisted surgery may serve as the long-term development engine for this great industry for decades to come.
Top stocks by sector
Here’s a short list of my current favourite stocks to purchase for the long term from each of the 11 S&P sectors, plus my overall top 10. Several are on the list above, but several sectors had no representation, so I’ll provide a top selection in each area. I’ve also included links to The Motley Fool’s best stocks pages for each sector if you’re looking to focus on specific sectors in your portfolio.
- Information technology: CrowdStrike
- Healthcare: Intuitive Surgical
- Financials: Berkshire Hathaway
- Consumer discretionary: Mercado Libre
- Communications: Alphabet
- Industrials: Waste Management (WM -2.74%)
- Consumer staples: Costco (COST -0.50%)
- Energy: Chevron (CVX -0.68%)
- Utilities: NextEra Energy (NEE -0.01%)
- Real Estate: Realty Income (O -0.03%)
- Materials: Eagle Materials (EXP -1.07%)
Benefits and risks of investing in top stocks
Investing in these top stocks has its advantages and disadvantages.
Some of the benefits include:
- High growth potential: These firms have the potential to expand revenues and profits well above average in the following years.
- Strong return potential: Strong growth rates position these firms to generate substantial gains in their stock prices.
- Leaders in major growth megatrends: Many of the organisations on this list are leaders in harnessing megatrends such as cybersecurity, artificial intelligence (AI), e-commerce, financial technology, and cloud computing, and some potential risks to consider include the following:
- High values: Several of these firms are trading at prices above the market average. That might limit their upside if these firms can’t grow as rapidly as investors expect.
- Volatility: Many of these firms will be more volatile than the wider market.
How to build a portfolio of top stocks
- The list of 10 stocks and sector leaders is an excellent starting point. Use it to complete your study.
- Assess whether the stock aligns with your investment time horizon and risk profile.
- For other equities, use the criteria from the previous section – the company’s earnings history, dividend track record, and position in its industry.
- Don’t put too much into any one company or industry. Establish automatic deposits to your broking account and build your holdings over time.