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Take a longer-term view and success is a little trickier. That's why TIME asked investment-tracker Morningstar to pull together a list of the best-performing stocks over the past decade. On the eve of 2010, we figured it was time to take a look back and see which companies most thrived during the aughts. If a company can maintain its momentum over 10 years, maybe there's something to be learned. (See the best business deals...
Perusing the list of the top 200 companies (with a market cap of at least $250 million) produces a number of surprises. There is Apple, but no Microsoft. The Boston Beer Company makes an appearance, but not market leader Anheuser-Busch. Tractor Supply lands on the list; Wal-Mart doesn't. Even with the economic crisis, a number of financial firms show up, including asset manager Blackrock, regional bank Iberiabank and homebuilder NVR (parent of Ryan Homes). The decade's best industry: oil and natural gas. A full 34 companies - 17% of the list - either drill, transport, refine or sell...
What does the list teach more broadly...
First, barriers to entry matter. The list is packed with railroads, steelmakers, producers of heavy machinery and makers of technical instruments. These aren't companies you can compete with just by starting a business out of your garage. Sure, industrial pumps, valves and seals aren't exactly sexy, but if you've owned parts-maker Flowserve over the past decade, you're probably happy with your 499% return. At the other end of the spectrum, only two media companies make the list - broadcaster Central European Media Enterprises and comic-book-based Marvel Enterprises (which Disney is buying). For the most...
That doesn't mean it's impossible to do well in an industry with oodles of competition - just that if you're going to play that game, you'd better know your customer pretty well. Consider retail. The stores that make the list are all super-focused on what they sell. Chico's is for comfortable women's clothing. Gymboree is to dress your kids. Jos. A. Bank Clothiers is for men's suits and dress shirts. And PetMed Express is to order your dog's prescription online. Department stores, big-box discounters and generalist web sites - retailers that...