What two ETFs are good enough for Warren Buffett?
Warren Buffett has long recommended the S&P 500 index fund and ETF, and through his holding company Berkshire Hathaway, he also owns two of these types of investments: the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (NYSEMKT: VOO) and the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSEMKT: SPY).
“If you like spending six to eight hours per week working on investments, do it. If you don't, then dollar-cost average into index funds.” Buffett has long advised most investors to use index funds to invest in the market, rather than trying to pick individual stocks.
Two funds that have outperformed the S&P 500 and more than doubled in value in the past five years are the Invesco QQQ Trust (NASDAQ: QQQ) and the Vanguard Growth ETF (NYSEMKT: VUG). Here's a look at why these funds have done so well, and whether you should consider adding them to your portfolio.
The performance of an investment option is often one of the most critical aspects investors consider. The performance of these two ETFs will be highly dependent on the performance of the information technology sector. If information technology significantly outperforms other sectors, then QQQ will outperform VOO.
| ETF | Weight | TER |
|---|---|---|
| SPDR S&P US Financials Select Sector UCITS ETF | 13.41% | 0.15% |
| iShares MSCI World Paris-Aligned Climate UCITS ETF USD (Acc) | 0.33% | 0.20% |
| SPDR MSCI ACWI UCITS ETF USD Hedged (Acc) | 0.73% | 0.45% |
| JPMorgan Global Equity Premium Income UCITS ETF USD (acc) | 1.20% | 0.35% |
- Coca-Cola. Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) is one of the oldest stocks in Berkshire Hathaway's portfolio and its fourth-largest holding, accounting for more than 6% of its stock portfolio. ...
- Apple.
American Express. American Express continues to endure as one of Warren Buffett's favorite investments.
| ETF | Assets Under Management | Expense Ratio |
|---|---|---|
| Vanguard Information Technology ETF (VGT) | $70 billion | 0.10% |
| VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH) | $16.3 billion | 0.35% |
| Invesco S&P MidCap Momentum ETF (XMMO) | $1.6 billion | 0.34% |
| SPDR S&P Homebuilders ETF (XHB) | $1.8 billion | 0.35% |
Experts agree that for most personal investors, a portfolio comprising 5 to 10 ETFs is perfect in terms of diversification. But the number of ETFs is not what you should be looking at.
| Fund (ticker) | YTD performance | Expense ratio |
|---|---|---|
| Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) | 10.4 percent | 0.03 percent |
| SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) | 10.4 percent | 0.095 percent |
| iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV) | 10.4 percent | 0.03 percent |
| Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) | 8.6 percent | 0.20 percent |
Why not invest in QQQ?
QQQ usually declines more in bear markets, has high sector risk, often appears overvalued, and holds no small-cap stocks. This ETF allows traders to invest in the largest 100 non-financial companies listed on the Nasdaq.
The majority of individual investors should, however, seek to hold 5 to 10 ETFs that are diverse in terms of asset classes, regions, and other factors. Investors can diversify their investment portfolio across several industries and asset classes while maintaining simplicity by buying 5 to 10 ETFs.
For investors seeking an alternative to QQQ's mega-cap exposure, the Invesco S&P 500 Top 50 ETF (XLG) is an excellent option. XLG tracks the S&P 500 Top 50 Index, which, like QQQ, is heavily weighted towards top-tier tech and consumer stocks.
Warren Buffett's Berkshire Owns 2 ETFs: SPY and VOO
Regardless of what Berkshire buys or sells, one of the cheapest ways for an investor to diversify is with an exchange-traded fund. If you want to buy what Buffett has at Berkshire, he has two ETFs listed on the 13F: SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust SPY. Vanguard S&P 500 ETF VOO.
Warren Buffett owns 2 ETFs—this one is better for everyday investors, experts say.
Apple is Berkshire's largest public stock holding by far. Berkshire's $155 billion Apple stake is roughly four times larger than its second-largest holding. Buffett first bought Apple shares in the first quarter of 2016, and Apple's stock price is up more than 500% since the beginning of 2016.
Buffett's Two Lists is a productivity, prioritisation and focusing approach where you write down your top 25 goals; circle your 5 highest priorities; then focus on those 5 while 'avoiding at all costs' doing anything on the remaining 20.
The current portfolio value is calculated to be $347.36 Bil. The turnover rate is 1%. In Warren Buffett's current portfolio as of 2023-12-31, the top 5 holdings are Apple Inc (AAPL), Bank of America Corp (BAC), American Express Co (AXP), Coca-Cola Co (KO), Chevron Corp (CVX), not including call and put options.
Buffett's current vehicle, the 2014 Cadillac XTS that he has owned for approximately ten years, is a testament to his reputation for frugality.
These were the stocks Buffett had in his portfolio heading into 2024. Some top picks of Berkshire are Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), Coca-Cola Co (NYSE:KO) and Chevron Corp (NYSE:CVX).
What 5 stocks is Warren Buffett buying?
| Stock | Number of Shares Owned | Value of Stake |
|---|---|---|
| Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) | 400,000,000 | $23.8 billion |
| Chevron (NYSE:CVX) | 126,093,326 | $18.9 billion |
| Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) | 248,018,128 | $15.1 billion |
| Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ:KHC) | 325,634,818 | $11.3 billion |
- Palo Alto Networks Inc. (ticker: PANW)
- Nvidia Corp. (NVDA)
- Apple Inc. (AAPL)
- Microsoft Corp. (MSFT)
- Alphabet Inc. (GOOG)
- Tesla Inc. (TSLA)
- AllianceBernstein Holding LP (AB)
- Walt Disney Co. (DIS)
| Symbol | Name | 5-Year Return |
|---|---|---|
| IUS | Invesco RAFI Strategic US ETF | 14.75% |
| OEF | iShares S&P 100 ETF | 14.73% |
| SPHB | Invesco S&P 500® High Beta ETF | 14.58% |
| SPYG | SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 Growth ETF | 14.40% |
| Ticker | Fund name | 5-year return |
|---|---|---|
| SOXX | iShares Semiconductor ETF | 30.70% |
| XLK | Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund | 24.57% |
| IYW | iShares U.S. Technology ETF | 24.09% |
| FTEC | Fidelity MSCI Information Technology Index ETF | 22.79% |
One metric that investors often look to is trailing one-month performance. The top ETFs for equities, bonds, fixed income, commodities, and currencies for April 2024 based on this metric include CRPT, FCVT, EMHY, DBA, and UUP.
