Stocks to Buy: 2 “Hold Forever” Plays, 3 to Buy for a Year, and 2 “Lotto-Ticket” Rocket Shares

The first time I met Fox Business star Stuart Varney was around 2010 - when I appeared on his show as an invited guest in New York City. During an off-camera chat, Varney asked me about Microsoft Corp. (NasdaqGS:MSFT).

"Should I sell it?" Varney asked. "It's my retirement."

I should tell you that "Mr. Softy" was living up to its nickname; the stock was stuck in the upper $20 and had "flatlined" for years.

"Absolutely not," I told my host. "Watch what happens when it breaks above $30. It will easily go to $35, which will create a new base for the stock to go higher."

A couple of years later - when it was $35 - he thanked me for being right and asked again if he should sell it.

"Absolutely not," I said again, explaining that - at some point - CEO Steve Ballmer was going to go and that the MSFT leader was the drag on his own company. "He's nothing but a cheerleader shepherding his own fortune and has no desire to take any risks. When the new talent takes the helm, they won't have the same skin in the game and will have to prove themselves to make their fortune. That's when we'll see what MSFT is capable of."

(Ask Bill Patalon, the founding editor of Money Map Press and the steward of the Private Briefing advisory, about the same conversation I had with him - which he wrote about years ago.)

The rest is history.