The 2 Best Industrial Stocks to Buy and Hold for Decades

Tech trends like artificial intelligence (AI) and quantum computing are what grab the headlines; there's no doubt about that. And while the gains from them are undeniably impressive, it's always a good idea to hedge your bets.

Don't put all your eggs in one basket, as the old saying goes. And a good way to avoid doing that with tech stocks is by investing in industrial companies, their polar opposite in many ways.

Where tech stocks are usually concerned with cyberspace, industrial companies concern themselves with the physical world and produce things people need. They're often boring, but they are incredibly important.

The tech industry also strongly relies on the two companies below, albeit indirectly. Both of these stocks are strong long-term plays you'll want to sit on for years, maybe even decades, and they make a stable hedge against potential volatility in the tech sector.

Image source: Getty Images.

Excitable atoms

Up first is Cameco (NYSE: CCJ), Canada's premier uranium miner and the second-largest in the world in terms of production. In 2025, Cameco alone was responsible for 15% of all the uranium produced globally.

At first blush, the company's business is simple and straightforward: Cameco mines and refines uranium for use in nuclear power plants. But there's a lot more to it than that.

The mines it holds, for one thing, are large and the uranium ore they produce is of a very high grade, requiring less refinement than the lower-grade ore that comprises much of Kazakhstan's production.

Cameco is also involved in the production of usable nuclear fuel pellets and rods. It even has a hand in the reactors that fuel is used in through its 49% share of a joint ownership stake in engineering company Westinghouse. Westinghouse designs and manufactures the AP1000, the most advanced commercially available nuclear reactor in the world.

And, given that AI's energy needs have governments and companies around the world investing in nuclear power, Cameco will also profit indirectly from the tech industry.

That means you can profit from AI without exposing your portfolio to more of the risks of the industry. And Cameco is already enjoying some serious growth and profits thanks to the almost 35% growth in the price of uranium over the past year.

For the whole of 2025, Cameco's revenue climbed 11% to $3.4 billion year over year and its adjusted earnings per share (EPS) grew 114%. Give this one a look for a long-term buy and hold.

The other kind of streaming company

Also based in Canada, Wheaton Precious Metals (NYSE: WPM) is a streaming company, but you won't find it next to Netflix in the app store.

No, the way Wheaton and other streaming companies like it operate is by offering start-up capital to a mine in exchange for a set amount of metal, in Wheaton's case gold and silver, at a set price over a long period of time.

That's great for the mine for two reasons.

The first is because mining is a very capital-intensive industry, so everything helps when you're trying to set up a new operation.

The second is due to the fact that when, say, a copper or nickel mine extracts the mineral it is looking for, there's often gold or silver in the ore that the mine doesn't need.

Wheaton, per its agreement with the mine, takes that gold and silver at a price that's usually well below the spot price and either holds it or sells it at market price for a profit. Wheaton can capture all the profit from gold and silver with none of the risks associated with operating a mine.

And Wheaton generates the bulk of its revenue from gold and silver, 52% and 46% respectively with another roughly 2% coming from palladium, platinum, and cobalt.

Due to the incredible runs gold and silver have been on, Wheaton's revenue climbed 80% over 2024 last year and its net profit margin increased from 41.19% to 63.58%.

It also raised its dividend, which yields 0.47% at current prices, by 18% over the previous quarter. And with a payout ratio of just 29.5% at present, that dividend still has plenty of room to grow.

Gold and silver have both been on an incredible run lately. Despite a recent pullback to under $5,000 an ounce, gold is still up 13% year to date and 68.4% over the past 12 months. Silver is up 8% year to date and 144% over the past 12 months.

With current events around the world making the market a little nervous, to say the very least, I expect precious metals to either stay around their current highs or continue to grow.

Wheaton will be a good way to play that, offering an opportunity to capture gold and silver's gains without the risks of holding a mining company or the hassle of owning physical gold or silver.

James Hires has positions in Cameco. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Cameco and Netflix. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.