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Pocket Option: Best American stocks for Brazilian investors

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11 April 2025
9 min to read
Best American stocks: How to maximize your gains in the international market

The American stock market offers unique opportunities for Brazilian investors seeking international diversification. With world-class companies and unmatched liquidity, the best American stocks can strategically complement your investment portfolio. In this comprehensive learn, we analyze the most promising options and how to access them directly from Brazil.

Why invest in the best American stocks directly from Brazil

The interest of Brazilian investors in the United States stock market has grown significantly in recent years. This doesn’t happen by chance: the best American stocks represent an opportunity for international diversification that can protect your assets from the volatility of the Brazilian real and provide access to sectors that are underrepresented on the B3 (Brazilian stock exchange).

Contrary to what many think, investing in the best American stocks has become an increasingly accessible process for Brazilians. With the digitalization of financial services and platforms like Pocket Option, it’s possible to buy shares of giants like Apple, Microsoft, and Amazon with the same ease as investing in national companies.

Characteristics of the best American stocks that attract Brazilians

What makes the best American stocks so attractive to Brazilian investors? There are several determining factors that explain this growing popularity:

Characteristic Advantage for Brazilian investors
Greater liquidity Ease of buying and selling without significantly affecting the price
Currency diversification Partial protection against the devaluation of the real
Access to innovative sectors Exposure to technology, biotechnology, and other sectors underrepresented in Brazil
Global companies Indirect benefit of exposure to global markets through multinationals
Culture of consistent dividends Cash flow in dollars for income-focused investors

One of the central advantages of investing in the best American stocks is the possibility of accessing companies with innovative and globally scalable business models. While the Brazilian stock exchange is predominantly composed of commodities, banks, and state-owned companies, the American market offers access to leaders in technology, advanced healthcare, and new consumer models.

The best American stocks to invest in 2025

Considering the current economic context, some specific sectors and companies stand out among the best American stocks for Brazilian investors. It’s important to note that this analysis considers factors such as financial stability, growth potential, and relevance in the post-pandemic scenario.

Technology: the sector that continues to lead

The technology sector remains one of the most promising among the best American stocks. Companies with a strong digital presence, subscription-based business models, and leadership in innovation tend to present consistent results even in challenging scenarios.

Company Strengths Considerations for Brazilian investors
Microsoft (MSFT) Leadership in cloud (Azure), recurring revenues with Microsoft 365, strong AI performance Stability and consistent growth, increasing dividends for 18 consecutive years
NVIDIA (NVDA) Dominance in the GPU market for AI and data centers Higher volatility, above-average growth potential
Alphabet (GOOGL) Dominance in digital search, YouTube, Android system Diversification within the technology sector, attractive valuation compared to other giants

Pocket Option offers Brazilian investors facilitated access to these and other companies in the technology sector, with competitive commissions and educational material in Portuguese to understand the nuances of the American market.

Health and biotechnology: innovation with global impact

The American health sector represents a unique opportunity for Brazilian investors, as Brazil has few listed companies in this segment. Among the best American stocks in this sector, the following stand out:

  • UnitedHealth Group (UNH): largest health insurance company in the US, with stable business and growing dividends
  • Johnson & Johnson (JNJ): diversification in pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and consumer products
  • Moderna (MRNA): representative of the new generation of biotechnology with an mRNA platform applicable beyond vaccines
  • Eli Lilly (LLY): strong portfolio in diabetes and revolutionary potential in obesity treatments

This sector is particularly relevant for diversification, as it has a low correlation with the Brazilian economy and offers exposure to medical innovations not available in companies listed on B3.

Strategies for Brazilians to invest in the best American stocks

Investing in international stocks requires some adaptations to the strategy used in the domestic market. To maximize your results with the best American stocks, consider these approaches:

Dollar-cost averaging: the preferred strategy of Brazilians

One of the most popular strategies among Brazilians who invest in the best American stocks is dollar-cost averaging (DCA) or regular contributions. This technique consists of investing fixed amounts at regular intervals, regardless of the price.

This approach is particularly advantageous for Brazilians due to exchange rate volatility. By investing periodically, the investor mitigates the risk of contributing all their capital at an unfavorable moment in the exchange rate.

Month Value in R$ USD/BRL Rate Value in USD Stock price Shares purchased
January R$ 1,000 5.10 $196.08 $150 1.31
February R$ 1,000 5.35 $186.92 $140 1.33
March R$ 1,000 5.20 $192.31 $160 1.20
April R$ 1,000 5.00 $200.00 $145 1.38

Through Pocket Option, Brazilians can set up automatic monthly contributions in dollars, facilitating the implementation of this strategy without the need to manually convert reais to dollars for each investment.

How to analyze and select the best American stocks

To adequately choose among the best American stocks for your portfolio, it’s essential to adopt a structured analysis methodology. Unlike the Brazilian market, where local macroeconomic factors have considerable weight, American companies often present a more global profile.

Brazilian investors need to adapt their analysis to consider specific aspects of the American market:

  • Analysis of comparative multiples with peers in the same sector (not just the isolated P/E)
  • Assessment of the company’s international exposure (revenues outside the US)
  • History of revenue growth and operating margin
  • Stock buyback and dividend policy (different approach from Brazil)
  • Potential for technological disruption in the sector

A fundamental difference when analyzing the best American stocks is in the interpretation of dividends. While in Brazil high dividends are often valued, in the US, growing companies often opt for stock buybacks instead of dividends, which can be equally advantageous for the shareholder in the long term.

Metric Importance for analysis How to interpret for American companies
ROE (Return on Equity) High Look for ROE consistently above 15%, with an upward trend
Revenue growth High Sustainable growth rates according to company maturity and sector
EBITDA margin Medium-High Compare with the sector average and observe the 5-year trend
Net Debt/EBITDA Medium Ideally below 2.5x for mature companies, except utilities

Pocket Option provides fundamental and technical analysis tools specific to the best American stocks, facilitating comparison between companies in the same sector and monitoring relevant metrics.

Tax aspects for Brazilians investing in the best American stocks

One of the most challenging aspects for Brazilians when investing in the best American stocks is taxation, which has important peculiarities compared to local investments.

The main points that Brazilian investors need to consider include:

Tax aspect Current rule for Brazilians What to consider
Capital gains tax 15% on monthly net gains above R$ 35,000 Conversion of the gain by the exchange rate on the day of sale
Dividend taxation 30% withholding tax in the US Possibility of partial compensation in Brazilian income tax
Declaration of assets abroad Mandatory for values above USD 100,000 Declaration of the balance on December 31 in the annual tax return
Exchange gain Exempt up to R$ 35,000/month, then taxed at 15% Calculate separately from the stock gain

An aspect often neglected when investing in the best American stocks is estate planning. Unlike assets in Brazil, American stocks may require specific processes for transfer to heirs in case of the holder’s death.

Pocket Option offers specialized support for Brazilian investors, helping to navigate tax complexities and optimize the declaration of investments in the best American stocks on Income Tax returns.

Comparing ETFs and individual stocks for exposure to the American market

When seeking the best American stocks to invest in, Brazilians often face the decision between buying individual stocks or ETFs (Exchange Traded Funds) that replicate specific indices or sectors.

This is an important strategic decision that depends on the investor’s profile, time available for analysis, and portfolio size:

Characteristic ETFs Individual stocks
Diversification Automatic and broad Depends on the portfolio construction by the investor
Time needed for management Low (passive strategy) High (individual company analysis)
Potential to outperform the market Limited (follows the index) Possible with adequate selection
Cost Annual management fee Only transaction costs

For Brazilian investors who are beginners in the American market, a hybrid strategy may be ideal: using ETFs such as S&P 500 (SPY) or Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) as the portfolio base, complementing with positions in some of the best American stocks selected individually.

  • For broad exposure: ETFs like VTI (Vanguard Total Stock Market)
  • For specific sectors: Sector ETFs like XLK (technology) or XLV (healthcare)
  • For specific strategies: complement with individual stocks of the best companies in the sector

Pocket Option offers access to both ETFs and the best individual American stocks, allowing Brazilian investors to implement mixed strategies with cost efficiency.

The impact of the Brazilian economy on choosing the best American stocks

An aspect often neglected by Brazilian investors is how Brazil’s economic situation should influence the choice of the best American stocks to compose their portfolio.

There are important relationships between Brazilian economic cycles and the performance of certain sectors in the US:

Brazilian economic scenario Potentially benefited American sectors Examples of companies
Brazilian real in strong devaluation American companies with low exposure to international markets UnitedHealth, Costco, Walmart
High interest rates in Brazil American companies with growing dividends Johnson & Johnson, Procter & Gamble, Coca-Cola
Strong commodity exports Technology and industrial automation companies Deere & Company, Caterpillar, Honeywell
Political instability in Brazil Assets considered “”safe havens”” in the American market Microsoft, Apple, Amazon

A strategic approach for Brazilians is to seek in the best American stocks a complementarity to their existing economic exposure. For example, an investor who works in the Brazilian banking sector could favor sectors underrepresented in Brazil, such as technology and advanced healthcare.

The Pocket Option platform allows filtering the best American stocks by sector, facilitating the construction of a portfolio that truly complements existing investments in Brazil.

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Conclusion: building a sustainable strategy to invest in the best American stocks

Investing in the best American stocks represents a valuable opportunity for international diversification and exposure to sectors underrepresented in the Brazilian market. However, success in this type of investment requires a structured approach adapted to the particularities of the Brazilian investor.

The main lessons we can extract about investments in the best American stocks include:

  • International diversification is not just currency protection, but exposure to innovative business models and global sectors
  • Regular and disciplined investment (dollar-cost averaging) tends to work better to mitigate currency risks
  • Understanding tax and operational differences is fundamental to maximize net return
  • A hybrid strategy combining ETFs and individual stocks can be ideal for most Brazilian investors

To implement your investment strategy in the best American stocks efficiently, count on Pocket Option. Our platform offers direct access to the American market, analysis tools in Portuguese, specialized support for tax issues, and competitive costs for Brazilian investors.

Start your international diversification journey today and take advantage of the opportunities that the best American stocks can bring to your investment portfolio.

FAQ

What are the best American stocks for investors with little capital?

For Brazilians with limited resources, the best options include companies that offer fractional shares. Platforms like Pocket Option allow investing small amounts in large companies such as Apple, Amazon and Microsoft through fractionalization. Alternatively, broad ETFs like VTI (Vanguard Total Stock Market) offer exposure to the entire American market with a single accessible investment.

How to declare investments in American stocks on Income Tax?

Investments in American stocks must be declared in the "Assets and Rights" form using code 3.31 (Stocks). The value to be declared is the balance in reais on December 31, converted at the official exchange rate. Capital gains must be calculated monthly and, when above R$35,000, paid via DARF with code 8523. Dividends received must be declared as "Exempt and Non-Taxable Income".

What is the minimum amount needed to invest in American stocks?

Currently, there is no legal minimum amount for Brazilians to invest in American stocks. With Pocket Option, it's possible to start with any amount through fractional shares. In practice, it's recommended to start with at least R$500 to R$1,000 to dilute operational costs. The most important thing is to maintain regular contributions.

Do American stocks pay more dividends than Brazilian ones?

Not necessarily. The best American dividend stocks generally distribute between 2% to 4% per year, while many Brazilian ones pay higher percentages. The difference lies in consistency: American companies like Johnson & Johnson and Coca-Cola have increased their dividends annually for more than 50 consecutive years. Additionally, many American companies prefer to conduct share buybacks instead of paying high dividends.

How to protect investments in American stocks from exchange rate fluctuation?

There is no perfect protection against dollar fluctuation when investing in American stocks. The most effective strategy is dollar-cost averaging (regular contributions), which minimizes the risk of investing all capital at an unfavorable exchange rate moment. More sophisticated investors can use derivatives as a hedge, but this strategy brings additional costs. Remember that exposure to the dollar is part of international diversification and can be beneficial in the long run.