Stocks will likely double from current levels over the next 10 years, billionaire buy-and-hold investor Ron Baron said Friday in a CNBC interview from his annual investment conference in New York City.
In a "Squawk Box" interview, Baron said stocks have only done poorly for the last 15 years because they were too high in 1999. He said current conditions will help businesses grow.
"Now you're at a very good level. Interest rates are real low, energy costs are real low, housing is doing better, cars are—everything's doing better," Baron said.
The recent fall in oil prices is "hugely stimulative," he said, estimating that it amounts to 23 percent tax cut for Americans.
Baron formed the investment company that bears his name in 1982. It currently has $26.5 billion in assets under management.
The theme of this year's conference is "Built to Last." The gathering seeks to explore the aspects of a company's culture and management that help it survive.
Baron said that few businesses that people think are going to last actually do so. He pointed to Eastman Kodak as an example of a company that invented a technology—digital photography—but failed to exploit it. The former film giant now specializes in business services and imaging solutions.
The key to picking long-term winners is first identifying a company's competitive advantage and understanding why other firms can't do what it does, Baron said. The final component is a management team with the ability to change with the times.
"Ultimately when other people do it, they have to make sure that the people who are running those businesses are fast enough on their feet and innovative enough in their thought processes to be able to make their businesses pivot and do something differently or take advantage of the opportunities," Baron said.
