Patient investors can generate excellent returns in the stock market whether they're making large initial investments or tiny ones. If you have the budget, though, you'll get higher absolute returns with bigger stock purchases from both dividends and capital appreciation.

Putting $50,000 into a few top stocks, for example, could help a large, diversified portfolio grow more quickly. Pick the right investments, and you can add stability and significant passive income to the mix, as well. With that goal in mind, here are some excellent stock buys right now.

(NASDAQ: MSFT) has already made many millionaires over the past several decades, but don't let the high valuation scare you away from this growth stock. Its last earnings update demonstrated that the software titan is nowhere near hitting a limit on its global business. Sales jumped 16% last quarter, translating into $10 billion of extra second-quarter revenue.

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Source Fool.com