Brilliant Buys for Uncertain Times: 2 Growth Stocks to Own for the Long Term

Uncertainty is a part of life, and it also plays a big role in the stock market. During periods of high uncertainty, investors tend to become anxious, and right now, there is a lot to be nervous about.

The U.S. is in the midst of a conflict with Iran, which, together with tariffs, is clouding the economic landscape. Meanwhile, artificial intelligence (AI), while a great technological step forward, also raises many questions about its ultimate impact on businesses and workers. At the same time, investors have also started to question when the AI infrastructure spending sprees in tech may peak.

That's a lot to take in; however, it is ultimately best to push that to the side so as not to feel overwhelmed. Instead, take this period to find companies with exceptional businesses that can compound over time. Two companies that fit this bill are Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) and Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL).

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Amazon: Size matters

Amazon built the greatest e-commerce business on the planet from the ground up. The company spent big to create a massive fulfillment and logistics network that is unrivaled. Today, it offers consumers an unmatched selection of goods that can arrive at their doorsteps sometimes within hours but usually within a day or two for most items. That type of convenience locks in customer loyalty and helps create a wide moat.

Meanwhile, Amazon continues to invest in pushing efficiency and speeding up delivery times through the use of AI and robotics. The company is the largest manufacturer and operator of robots in the world, deploying more than 1 million at its facilities. It also recently acquired start-up Fauna Robotics and Swiss robotics company RIVR to build on its robotic lead.

In addition to its e-commerce business, Amazon is also the largest cloud computing company in the world with its Amazon Web Services (AWS). The company pioneered the infrastructure-as-a-service industry, and today, it remains the primary computing backbone for much of the digital economy. Amazon is now leveraging that same playbook for AI, doubling down on capital expenditures (capex) to ensure it captures the next generation of cloud workloads.

In e-commerce and cloud computing, size and scale matter, which helps to create a barrier to entry, as well as two strong compounding businesses.

Apple: The lock-in effect

While Apple is best known for making the iPhone and its other electronic devices and computers, it's the company's ecosystem that makes it a great business. Apple has been able to establish itself as a high-end electronics brand that tends to draw in more affluent customers. Meanwhile, smartphones and computers have natural replacement cycles, and the company continues to add more customers.

The beauty of its business, though, is that these customers buy into its high-margin service business and become locked into its platform. Things like cloud storage, payments, apps, and app-store subscriptions add a high-margin recurring revenue element to its business while making its platform sticky. This just lets Apple's business compound naturally over time.

Overall, Apple has one of the world's best business models, which makes the stock a great long-term buy.

Run, don't hide

In uncertain markets, your natural instinct is likely to play defense. However, this is when you want to be scooping up great compounding businesses when they go on sale. The companies that tend to outperform over time aren't always the ones that look safest in the moment, but rather the ones that can continue to grow.

That's what makes Amazon and Apple so compelling. Both companies are market leaders with wide moats and durable business models that are poised to grow over the long term. Those are the types of stocks you want as the core of your portfolio.

Geoffrey Seiler has positions in Amazon. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon and Apple and is short shares of Apple. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.