Motley Fool contributor Rick Aristotle Munarriz has posted his latest article, which contemplates which four stocks heid pick if he needed long-term investments that would hold up until retirement. His choices: Wal-Mart, whose earnings have doubled during the past five years; Google, which has "perfected the art of monetizing page views and has done so with inspiring margins;" Disney, which "owns the best brand in family entertainment;" and Apple, a pick that he says "has nothing to do with the companyis recent success in digital music."
Mr. Munarriz goes on to note that he actually likes Appleis long-term prospects better than its short-term outlook, simply "because Apple is a survivor" that "oozes innovation. Personal computers and MP3 players are commodities for the most part, yet Apple has been able to make its Macs and iPods distinctive -- and proprietary. While that also means that Apple sometimes lets its ego get the better of it when the going is good, itis still an amazing company that is likely to find niches worth differentiating in the future."