This is a tough year for investing in stocks, with the stock market experiencing a never-ending cycle of ups and downs. Major US indices fell last week, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average ending the week at 29,888.78 – just a day after falling below the key 30,000 level for the first time since January 2021. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 posted its worst week ever. 2020 and the Nasdaq Composite lost 4.8% for the week. And the Fed is set to pursue a more aggressive rate hike policy, which could lead to even more volatility for equities. Venture capitalist Kevin O’Leary believes that trying to time the market is futile. “I can’t time the market. I just can’t. I’ve tried several times, but you can’t,” O’Leary, president of O’Leary Ventures, told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Asia.” On Thursday. Instead, he prefers to own companies that he thinks are sustainable. O’Leary said, “I like companies that aren’t going to zero. Moderna isn’t going zero, Pfizer isn’t going zero and Nestle isn’t going zero. They have businesses that are very sustainable.” Moderna and Pfizer are both pharmaceutical firms — a sector that often has significant cash flow and steady dividends and, as such, is seen as more resilient during recessions. Both companies At the forefront of the global COVID-19 vaccination effort, the US Food and Drug Administration on Friday released Pfizer’s three-dose vaccine for children aged 6 months to 4 years and two doses of Moderna for children aged 6 months to 5 years. Biopharma stock currently accounts for about 4.5% of O’Leary’s portfolio, while the broader health care sector accounts for about 20%. Investors also prefer consumer staples like Nestle because they are more vulnerable to economic cycles. are less affected and enjoy relatively steady earnings growth and dividend payouts. “I have companies with strong balance sheets that make money. Now the prices of their shares go up and down based on people’s perception of what the price-to-earnings ratio should be. And even health care hasn’t survived the recession. But the companies are strong,” he said. In addition to their strong balance sheets, O’Leary also likes these companies for their good cash flow — a portion of which is distributed back to investors as dividends. This year All three stocks are in the red, but Nestlé and Pfizer continue to pay dividends. Nestlé’s dividend yield is 2.6%, while Pfizer’s is 3.4%. Moderna currently does not pay dividends. More than never’ This year’s massive market correction has undoubtedly scared some investors, but O’Leary isn’t surprised by the short-term price drop. In fact, he’s repeating the names he believes in. “We’re not up and we have a few months like everyone else, but I’m a long-term thinker about this… what I do is I try and find re-entry points because I’m always going to capitalize. I’m trying If I believe the company’s story, I invest more money working on improvements,” he said. O’Leary said he recently bought undisclosed stakes in Walt Disney, Adobe and DocuSign. He Admits that stocks have come down “significantly” but is adamant that they will bounce back at some point. He is also careful about how to manage the risk in his portfolio. His golden rule? Has worked for “decades”.