3 Buy-Ranked Stocks That Warren Buffett Loves

Shares of Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRKa) BRKA recently hit $300,000 per share, a major milestone in the company’s storied history. Buffett and the firm have come a long way, and many now point to ‘the Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) of Omaha’ as the gold standard of long-term investing.

Buffett’s company holds a massive amount shares in some of the biggest and most historic companies in the U.S., including Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC) , Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) and IBM (NYSE:IBM) . The holding company’s long-term success is also underscored by its Class B shares BRKB, which also rest near their all-time highs.

Attempting to mimic Berkshire Hathaway’s success would be tough, but what investors can do in order to try to invest like Buffett is to look at the company’s holdings and find stocks that fit their own strategies.

Now, let’s take a look at three stocks with high Zacks Ranks that could help investors act more like Buffett:

1. Visa Inc. (NYSE:V)

Shares of the credit card giant have surged 45.54% in 2017, which more than doubles the S&P 500’s movement. Visa is also currently a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) and has received 16 upward earnings estimate revisions for its current full fiscal year against no downgrades—all within the last 60 days.

Based on our Zacks Consensus Estimates, Visa’s EPS is expected to jump 12.95% in its current quarter. Looking further ahead, Visa’s full-year fiscal 2018 earnings are projected to pop by 16.45%. On top of this bottom line growth, the credit card firm’s fiscal 2018 sales are expected to hit $20.09 billion, marking a 9.45% climb—which would be strong for a company of its size and age.

Visa also boasts a cash flow growth rate of 20.74%, which doubles the “Financial Transaction Services” average and looks even better compared to rival Mastercard (NYSE:MA) . This growing cash position should help the company invest more in up-and-coming payment methods, including the quickly growing mobile payment sector where Visa already operates.

2. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Walmart is currently a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) and sports an overall “B” VGM score. Shares of the retail powerhouse have climbed 41% in 2017 and 23.69% in the last 12-weeks. Walmart has also recently proved that it is prepared to take on Amazon (V:AMZ) after posting strong e-commerce and grocery sales.

Walmart’s P/S ratio is currently 0.59, helping demonstrate that the retail powerhouse presents investors with a solid bang for their respective buck. On top of that, the company is trading at 22.11x earnings, which is comparable to the “Retail – Supermarkets” industry average.

Within the last 60 days, Walmart has experienced nine upward earnings estimate revisions for its current quarter and 14 for its full-year. These earnings revisions are highly important and often prove to be a strong indicator of future performance. Walmart has beat or matched earnings estimates in 13 of the last 14 quarters, including each of the trailing nine periods.

3. American Express Company (NYSE:AXP)

Shares of American Express currently sit close to their 52-week high, after climbing 13% in the last 12 weeks to help the company’s current year gains reach 34.56%. But American Express could easily break into a new range if the company matches its bottom line growth projections.

American Express is projected to see its fourth quarter 2017 earnings skyrocketed by 69.56% to hit $1.54 per share, based on our current Zacks Consensus Estimates. The company’s sales are also expected to gain nearly 9% to hit $8.73 billion in Q4.

American Express is also currently a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) that is trading at 17.02 earnings, which marks a discount against its industry’s average. The credit card company has also matched or topped earnings estimates in each of the trailing three quarters, as well as seven of the last eight.

Zacks Editor-in-Chief Goes "All In" on This Stock

Full disclosure, Kevin Matras now has more of his own money in one particular stock than in any other. He believes in its short-term profit potential and also in its prospects to more than double by 2019. Today he reveals and explains his surprising move in a new Special Report.

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