Oracle of Omaha Warren Buffett is one of the world’s greatest investors.

His basic investing concepts include a long-term, value-focused approach to investing, and he has decades of experience identifying high-quality businesses and holding them over the long term.

His investing wisdom boils down to a few key philosophies: rational decision-making, patience, and focus on high-quality businesses.

With that in mind, there are three ASX 200 stocks that I think look like something Warren Buffett would invest in.

Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES)

Warren Buffett famously prioritises good-quality businesses. He always looks for companies with a strong history, trustworthy management, and reliable long-term profit growth. 

Australian conglomerate, Wesfarmers, embodies all three of these key traits. 

The company is well-established and financially sound with a history of reliable growth and stability. 

The retail giant also has a huge and highly diversified exposure across multiple industries and sectors. It owns and operates major everyday brands including Bunnings, Kmart, Target, and Officeworks. It also has operations across health and wellbeing, industrials, chemicals, energy, and even more.

Not only that, but it continually focuses on expanding its markets, product categories and digital capabilities to drive long-term growth. 

It’s this stability and consistent long-term net profit growth that make Wesfarmers stand out amongst other ASX blue-chip shares. 

Transurban Group Ltd (ASX: TCL)

One of the key qualities Warren Buffett looks for in an investment is a strong competitive moat.

Major toll-road operators, like Transurban, are a great example of businesses with deep structural advantages that help protect their long-term profitability.

Transurban shares are classically defensive because its services are essential. The company builds and operates major urban toll road networks, tunnels, and bridges and operates 22 assets across Australia, the US, and Canada.

Even in the event of a downturn, people still need to travel to work or transport goods and services. Transurban’s toll roads typically have stable traffic volumes year-round, which means the business enjoys resilient cash flow regardless of whether the economy is booming or slowing.

Transurban’s tolls generally increase according to inflation or its long-term agreements. That means Transurban can increase revenue over time without necessarily needing to win more customers.

Transurban owns an asset that can raise prices while customers continue using it. That’s a very attractive trait for investors like Warren Buffett.

Washington H Soul Pattinson and Co Ltd (ASX: SOL)

Soul Patts is another ASX 200 share which fits perfectly into the Warren Buffett style of investing. 

In fact, the Australian diversified investment house is often compared to Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway because it invests in a broad portfolio of assets. These range from ASX-listed companies, to private credit, to real estate, and others.

It is widely regarded as Australian dividend royalty and it’s also one of the few ASX shares that have continually raised its dividend payments over the past 28 years.

Soul Patts is heavily value-orientated. The company explicitly targets businesses capable of long-term compounding. It also focuses on investments where the price paid is justified by the company’s underlying quality, cash flows and long-term prospects. That’s a classic Warren Buffett strategy. 

The post These 3 ASX 200 shares look like classic Warren Buffett investments appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Samantha Menzies has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Transurban Group, Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Company Limited, and Wesfarmers. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Transurban Group and Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Company Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Wesfarmers. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

Warren Buffett has long been touted as one of, if not the, greatest investors of all time. Although he has now stepped back from running his conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway Inc (NYSE: BRK.A)(NYSE: BRK.B), Buffett has achieved immortality by securing an average return of 19.9% per annum between 1965 and 2024. That’s almost double what the broader S&P 500 Index has managed over the same span (10.4% per annum). As such, it might surprise readers to learn that there is an ASX index fund on our own market that has topped even Buffett’s average return over the past ten years.

That ASX index fund is none other than the BetaShares Nasdaq 100 ETF (ASX: NDQ). Yep, as of 31 July, NDQ units have delivered an average of 20.87% per annum over the preceding ten years. Since its inception in May of 2015, this index fund has averaged 19.32%.

Does that make NDQ the best index fund on the ASX? Perhaps even its best investment, period?

How has this ASX ETF delivered Buffett-like returns for ten years?

Well, there’s no denying that NDQ has been a phenomenal asset to have held for at least the past 16 years. A return of around 20% per annum is real wealth-building stuff. Just look at Buffett’s net worth. But before declaring it the best investment on the ASX, let’s go deeper into how it has delivered those returns.

At its core, the Betashares Nasdaq 100 ETF is a simple index fund that holds the largest 100 non-financial stocks listed on the American NASDAQ exchange. The NASDAQ is one of the USA’s two major stock exchanges. The New York Stock Exchange is the historic, flagship market, holding some of America’s most storied stocks. These include General Motors, Coca-Cola Co, Procter & Gamble, and Ford Motor Company.

The NASDAQ is the NYSE’s hip younger cousin. It is more modern and has attracted many of the companies that first found success in more recent decades. That includes almost every major tech stock listed in the United States.

That’s why NDQ’s top holdings are dominated by tech. To illustrate, NDQ’s current top-ten holdings are as follows:

1. NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA)
2. Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL)
3. Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT)
4. Micron Technology Inc (NASDAQ: MU)
5. Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ: AMZN)
6. Advanced Micro Devices Inc (NASDAQ: AMD)
7. Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ: GOOG)(NASDAQ: GOOGL)
8. Broadcom Inc (NASDAQ: AVGO)
9. Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA)
10. Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ: META)

As almost every investor under the sun knows, tech shares have been the driving force behind much of the US’ incredible returns over the past decade or two. This ASX index fund holds the US’ largest tech stocks at even higher concentrations than the broader market. That’s why NDQ’s returns have been so Buffett-esque of late.

Foolish takeaway

I think the Betashares Nasdaq 100 ETF will continue to be a solid investment going forward. Depending on how tech and AI continue to unfold, it could well keep up its returns going forward. However, investors need to be cautious. Many of NDQ’s largest holdings are now in the trillion-dollar club. Whilst this highlights their success, it also places a significant handicap on their future growth potential. After all, it’s a lot easier to go from a million-dollar company to a billion than from a billion to a trillion, and so forth.

Additionally, investors need to be aware that if sentiment turns on the tech sector, this ASX index fund could be hit hard, far harder than a fund covering the broader market.

Even so, it’s hard not to conclude that the Betashares Nasdaq 100 ETF has been one of the best ASX investments to have owned for the past decade. Let’s see if it can keep it up going forward.

The post 20% a year: Is this the ASX’s best index fund? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen has positions in Berkshire Hathaway, Coca-Cola, Microsoft, and Procter & Gamble. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Advanced Micro Devices, Berkshire Hathaway, BetaShares Nasdaq 100 ETF, and Microsoft. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended General Motors. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended BetaShares Nasdaq 100 ETF. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Advanced Micro Devices, Berkshire Hathaway, and Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

Shares in Amplitude Energy Ltd (ASX: AEL) have fallen more than 40% over the past 12 months, but if the analysts at Macquarie are to be believed, they are in line for a re-rating.

The broker has published a new research note on the gas producer with a bullish share price target which I’ll get to shortly.

First, let’s have a look at Amplitude’s recent full-year results release.

Solid operating results from Amplitude

The Otway Basin-focussed company delivered record full-year production of 27.6 petajoules of gas, up 3% on the previous year.

Revenue meanwhile was up 7% to $285.8 million, and underlying earnings were a record $191.8 million, up 12%.  

Managing Director Jane Norman said the company was delivering on its strategy.

She added:

Amplitude Energy has delivered record financial results for the third consecutive year, underpinned by solid operational performance and continued cash flow improvement through FY26. The business remains resilient in the face of external challenges. With strong base business cash flows providing funding for our growth projects, the Company is well placed to maximise its long-term value. Record production performance was driven by Orbost, where production was increased above the plant’s previous 68 TJ/day nameplate level. Orbost has since demonstrated an ability to operate well above 70 TJ/day, recently setting a series of new production records.

Ms Norman said the company was on track to achieve “transformational growth through the East Coast Supply Project, one of the most significant sources of new domestic gas supply currently being advanced in south-east Australia”.

She added:

Our acquisition of the discovered Artisan gas field, combined with our existing Annie discovery, provides the basis for a very attractive project, with further potential near-term exploration upside from Juliet drilling. The Artisan transaction is a good example of cooperation between Otway Basin participants leading to project synergies, and was made possible in part by our strong relationship with O.G. Energy.

Amplitude is forecasting production of 26.6-28.5 petajoules of gas in FY27.

Amplitude Energy shares looking cheap

Macquarie said in its research note that 80% of Amplitude’s legacy gas was contracted for the current calendar year, along with 80% of Annie and Artisan.

Macquarie added:

Recent contracts with AGL & Energy Australia have been well timed, and reflect the prudent approach of steadily engaging high quality, well capitalised customers over time and de-risking the project. AEL now has an impressive track record of operational delivery (not the case in exploration, however this could change very soon with Juliet), and production guidance was in line with our expectations.

Macquarie has a price target of $2.45 for Amplitude Energy shares, compared with the current price of $1.62.

The post Macquarie tips this ASX gas company to jump more than 50% appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Cameron England has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Macquarie Group. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Macquarie Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.