If I Could Only Buy and Hold a Single Stock, This Would Be It. | The Motley Fool

Selecting a single stock to buy and hold isn't an easy task. It's also a terrible investing strategy. However, I think it's a good exercise for investors to go through to understand what they are most confident in, then position their portfolios accordingly. For me, the best stock to buy and hold is one that is set up to win in the current market environment, with little worry of disruption. I think that Taiwan Semiconductor ( TSM +1.35%) fits the bill, and I've got a few reasons why that's the case. Image source: Getty Images. 1. Taiwan Semiconductor will be the ultimate winner of the AI buildout Companies are spending billions of dollars on artificial intelligence infrastructure, and are tripping over themselves to build data centers . They seemingly cannot get the computing power online fast enough to meet demand. There is also a bottleneck in computing, but while Nvidia 's graphics processing units (GPUs) have been the most widely used computing hardware, that dominance is coming into question. NYSE: TSM Key Data Points I believe Taiwan Semiconductor will be the ultimate winner in AI, as it provides chips for most computing units. While it has some competition, Taiwan Semiconductor has the best technology and the most production capacity, giving it an edge over some of its peers. Being a neutral party in the AI race will pay off for Taiwan Semiconductor, as it's expected to continue growing as long as data center capital expenditures continue rising. 2. Data center capital expenditures are expected to continue growing Many investors have balked at some of Nvidia's long-term projections, but most of those projections have come true. Its latest guidance is even more extreme, but Nvidia has more knowledge about the situation than many individual investors do. It projects that global data center capital expenditures will rise to $3 trillion to $4 trillion by 2030. That's huge growth from the $600 billion expected in 2025, and Taiwan Semiconductor will be a key provider of the chips used to realize this growth. 3. Taiwan Semiconductor's new technology addresses key concerns Taiwan Semiconductor is known for consistently introducing new chip technology, and 2026 will be no exception. Its latest chip generation, 2 nanometers (nm), is currently entering production and features some incredible improvements that clients have been clamoring for. The AI buildout may be slowed by the limited availability of energy. There are a few ways to alleviate this problem, and one of them is to make more energy-efficient hardware. Taiwan Semiconductor has accepted this challenge, and its new 2nm chips consume 25% to 30% less power than previous generation 3nm chips when configured to run at the same speed. These chips will be crucial in securing the next wave of AI growth, and with even more energy-efficient chips in development, Taiwan Semiconductor is expected to provide the advancements AI hyperscalers need to complete their build-out. 4. Taiwan Semiconductor's stock doesn't carry a large premium Many of the AI hyperscalers trade for an expensive...

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