When legendary investor Warren Buffett picks shares to invest in, you can bet your house on the fact they will not be flavour of the month type shares. Instead they will be proven businesses with great long-term prospects, at a good price, which possess an economic moat.
Warren Buffett coined the term economic moat to refer to the ability of a business to sustain a competitive advantage over its rivals. By having an economic moat the business should be able to protect its market share and its long-terms profits from competitors in the future.
Mr Buffett has dipped into the S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO) in the past with Berkshire Hathaway's stake in Insurance Australia Group Ltd (ASX: IAG).
If he were to return in the future, I feel these three shares could easily be on his shopping list:
Ansell Limited (ASX: ANN)
Ansell is one of the world's leading manufacturers of protective and medical gloves and condoms. Through investments in companies such as Johnson & Johnson and Kraft, it is clear that Mr Buffett has a penchant for the fast moving consumer goods category.
Year-to-date its shares are down by almost 19%, which could make today a very good entry point for long-term investors.
Cochlear Limited (ASX: COH)
Hearing implant maker Cochlear is the clear market leader in its category. I believe the company possesses a wide economic moat that Warren Buffett would find appealing. This was evident when it recently reported a 32% rise in interim profit to $94 million with robust sales growth.
Its share price climbed rapidly after its earnings report, so I wouldn't class the shares as being cheap. But I expect the company to be capable of producing strong earnings for many years which makes it good value for long-term investors.
Transurban Group (ASX: TCL)
Australia's toll road king Transurban is another company which I feel makes a good fit for Warren Buffett. It operates a portfolio of toll road assets which include the CityLink in Melbourne and the Westlink M7 in Sydney. As Australia's population grows, so too will the amount of cars on the road.
This should mean a sustained increase in demand for Transurban's toll roads for many years, providing shareholders with great returns.
Foolish takeaway
Each company I have discussed today has a market-leading position which I expect to be sustained in the future. I believe investors which follow Warren Buffett's buy-and-hold strategy will find great long-term success with these three quality companies.
