The Best Investment Ever

This week, we thought it would be fun to celebrate our successes, so we asked a pretty simple question: "What is the best investment you've ever made?" We also asked readers to describe why they originally bought the investment, if they still own it (or sold it), and what they learned from the experience.

We received many responses to this question--both from our Morningstar Discuss forum users and from our @MorningstarInc Twitter followers--some of which surprised us. To read the full thread and weigh in on this topic, please click here.

Here’s a summary of what our readers had to say.

Vanguard Funds Many respondents said they've made a lot of money over the years investing in Vanguard funds and holding them for the long haul.

For example,

retired at 48

details an investment made more than 60 years ago in

Jimoak

. Other posters who mentioned Vanguard Health Care include

BobVermont

,

tommy06

,

DennyF

, and

BoomerGuy

, whose holding in the fund dates back to the "early to mid-80s" and has since been converted to Admiral shares (a lower-cost share class offered to investors who meet a minimum investment threshold).

Other Vanguard funds mentioned include the

rickrmf

, and

proxysteve

and

plskmn

.

W004dal

's best investment turned out to be contributing to retirement accounts from October 2008 through August 2010, putting money into

W004dal

said.

Other Mutual Funds

Other respondents mentioned some well-known holdings from fund families like T. Rowe Price and Fidelity as being among their best picks. For instance,

stillers

invested in

reesenut

and

badlee

.

Saji1986

put a "sizable chunk of my IRA" into

Saji1986

said.

Arora1

also mentions a holding in Fidelity Low-Priced Stock, along with longtime positions in

A few readers said they considered

tommy06

and

Chinfist

. "Probably [Primecap Odyssey Aggressive Growth] has been my best, which has gone up almost 100% since I bought it 3-4 years ago,"

Chinfist

said.

Some other funds mentioned were Mutual Qualified Fund (now

mrlessgovt

and still owned today), and

tallaguy

in 1979).

Stock Picks Many readers recounted big profits made through investments in individual stocks. For example, several mentioned holdings in Berkshire Hathaway among their best all-time investments. Buffett true believers include Arora1, charger, proxysteve, theDumberone, and Hobocon.

Another frequently mentioned pick was

OOPS101

,

Trailman

,

MNfish

,

NWBuff

, and

KitCat

. "I have been a Macintosh owner and fangirl since 1991. All the analysts hated it, but I strongly believed in the company and Steve Jobs. What I learned is to ignore most of the pundits," said

KitCat

.

Among stock investments, the longest holding period mentioned was 60-plus years. "I have a significant holding of inherited

rforno

.

"[I] bought a small Swiss biotech company in early 1980s and it was repeatedly bought out until today I have a nice position in

Margaret

.

In the wake of the financial crisis

BillInGA

picked up some bargain bank stocks, such as

Retiredgary

’s single best stock purchase was

Marti038

picked up shares of

For

WillieB1

, the answer to our question was easy: "$8,000 in 1984 in

Phillips2010

had a big score with

A few responders said they like to invest in what they know. For instance, JAuden's best stock investment was in Chipotle Mexican Grill CMG. "During the financial meltdown I happened to stop in for lunch one day and the line for burritos was literally out the door. That prompted me to take a look at their financial statements. I saw that they had no debt and were set to grow their earnings even during a recession, plus the P/E was only in the teens which is cheap for a fast-growing company…. The shares have grown 15 times and I still own them."

Another reader who likes to buy what's familiar is

grybeard

. "Being a longtime, 40-plus years rider of Harley-Davidson motorcycles, when

Education Finally, many readers mentioned that the single best investment they had made was investing in themselves, via education. In fact, education was mentioned in this thread more times than any other single topic. According to some readers, education was a way to enrich their "human capital" and boost their earnings potential. Other readers mentioned that pursuing a degree in business, finance, or accounting, or getting their Certified Financial Planner designation, helped them learn more about investing and ultimately make better investment decisions.