3 Soaring Stocks to Hold for the Next 20 Years

Typically, when "soaring" stocks are mentioned in the stock market, it refers to a short-term spike in share prices. Today, however, I wanted to flip the script on this a bit and look at three fantastic stocks that have been soaring over the only time horizon that matters for investors: the long term.

While these three stocks have smashed the market's total returns over the long term, each remains a promising investment opportunity in my eyes as they move on to the next chapters of their growth story. With two of these stocks facing short-term pullbacks -- and the other remaining attractively valued -- here's the case for buying and holding these soaring stocks for the next 20 years.

Image source: The Motley Fool.

MercadoLibre: A 62-bagger since 2007

Latin American e-commerce and fintech juggernaut MercadoLibre (NASDAQ: MELI) has delivered annualized total returns of 25% since its initial public offering. If MercadoLibre's 100 million active buyers and 61 million monthly active users (MAUs) were their own countries, they'd rank third and fourth in Latin America, respectively, behind only Brazil and Mexico. I love this statistic because it highlights the company's economic prowess across the region, with over 1.8 million families citing MercadoLibre as their main source of income.

However, despite MercadoLibre already being the largest company in Latin America -- and landing on the Kantar BrandZ 100 Most Valuable Brands list -- the company still has ample room for growth. First, MercadoLibre benefits from the fact that Latin American e-commerce penetration rates remain only half that of the United States, at 14%. Second, the company's vast ecosystem offers it immense growth opportunities beyond simple e-commerce and payments, including logistics, advertising, streaming, a loyalty program (Meli+), consumer credit cards, merchant lending, and banking services. The cross-selling potential from one product to another within MercadoLibre's ecosystem is massive, creating a powerful, long-term flywheel effect.

Furthermore, Brazil, Argentina, and Mexico account for roughly 95% of MercadoLibre's sales, despite accounting for only about 60% of Latin America's total population, leaving plenty of growth for the company to expand in its younger markets. The stock has been sold off 30% over the last six months as the market weighed MercadoLibre's increased investments in its shipping and artificial intelligence (AI) operations, which hampered profitability.

However, I'll take this trade-off between short-term profitability and long-term growth every time. I think the market's reaction is a buying opportunity. Trading at 31 times forward earnings but growing sales by 45% in its last quarter, MercadoLibre looks like a top-tier growth stock poised to start soaring again.

Casey's General Stores: A 345-bagger since 1990

Iowa-headquartered Casey's General Stores (NASDAQ: CASY) has grown its total returns by 18% annually as the once-rural gas station operator grew to become the fifth-largest pizza chain in the U.S. Growing far beyond its roots, initially small towns in Iowa, Casey's has now turned its expansion plans to the South and the seas as it steadily marches beyond the Midwest. Now home to nearly 3,000 locations, Casey's has doubled its store count since 2010, while its earnings per share have risen eightfold over the same time.

Driving these meteoric returns for Casey's have been two main tailwinds for its operations. First, the convenience store industry continues to consolidate from small mom-and-pop locations to major chains like Casey's that benefit from scale advantages.

Second -- and more specific to Casey's than to the broader industry -- consumers are increasingly flocking to convenience stores for food, drinks, and groceries, rather than just for fuel. For example, 70% of Casey's inside transactions do not include fuel, and the company generates two-thirds of its gross profits from inside sales and the remainder from fuel.

Now 10 million rewards members strong and planning to roll out new wings and fries offerings across all its stores over the next two years, alongside its already popular pizza, Casey's continues to fire on all cylinders. Planning to grow earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) between 18% and 20% in 2026 and open at least 80 new stores, Casey's isn't outrageously priced at 20 times cash from operations. Although the stock has already become my daughter's largest holding, I'll be looking to add on any short-term dips, as I expect the stock to continue soaring over the long haul.

Wingstop: A 9-bagger since 2015

Speaking of wings, burgeoning chicken wings behemoth Wingstop (NASDAQ: WING) has generated annualized total returns of 23% since it went public in 2015 -- and this comes after the stock's 48% drop from its 52-week high.

While the sell-off is understandable, as Wingstop's valuation got out over its skis at over 100 times earnings in 2024, the market may have overreacted to the company's first quarter of declining same-store sales (SSS) in over 21 years. After growing its SSS by 71% between 2020 and 2024 -- more than doubling virtually every peer's figure, except Chipotle's 44% -- a 5% decline in an increasingly tough consumer environment isn't outrageous to me.

Home to just over 3,000 locations, Wingstop's growth story should be far from over, as management believes the company can reach 10,000 locations over the long term. With nearly 2,000 stores approved in its development pipeline, Wingstop plans to grow its store count by 15% in 2026.

However, the stock's growth story isn't all about new stores. In 2015, Wingstop's average unit volume (AUV) for its domestic stores in their first year was $1.1 million. Today, that figure is $2.1 million. Meanwhile, the investment cost for each new location rose only 35% over the same period, indicating that profitability has vastly improved overall, making Wingstop a very attractive option for franchisees.

Trading at 42 times forward earnings, Wingstop isn't classically cheap, but its pipeline of new stores, steadily rising AUV, and international growth potential outweigh the slight premium assigned to the stock, in my opinion. I have been, and suspect I'll continue to be, buying Wingstop throughout 2026, especially during this dip.

Josh Kohn-Lindquist has positions in Casey's General Stores, Chipotle Mexican Grill, MercadoLibre, and Wingstop. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Chipotle Mexican Grill and MercadoLibre. The Motley Fool recommends Casey's General Stores and Wingstop and recommends the following options: short March 2026 $42.50 calls on Chipotle Mexican Grill. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.