The ASX share market and global share market are going through a rough patch right now as the world adjusts to the reality that US will place tariffs on most goods arriving from nearly all countries. There are certain ASX-listed exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that could make great buys right now amid the sell-off.
The ASX ETF I'm going to talk about in this article is VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat ETF (ASX: MOAT).
Since the end of January 2025, the MOAT ETF unit price has fallen 14%, making it significantly cheaper than it was before. When a great business falls more than 10%, I get interested. The same can be said about good ASX ETFs – it's very interesting when they become cheaper.
Considering the size of the sell-off, I think the MOAT ETF could be an excellent long-term investment to buy.
One of things to note about this ASX ETF is that it only invests in US shares, which is one of the markets suffering a steep sell-off because of the tariffs. With that in mind, I think there are a few reasons to love it as a potential buy.
High-quality, durable businesses
There are integral questions about how much financial pain there's going to be in the next few years due to tariffs.
For a business to thrive during this uncertain period, I think it needs strong competitive advantages that are likely to endure for many years to come.
The MOAT ETF only invests in businesses that analysts from Morningstar believe have strong competitive advantages that could enable them to make outsized profits in the next two decades. Competitive advantages can also be called an economic moat.
Competitive advantages can come in many shapes and sizes such as cost advantages, intellectual property, regulatory advantages and so on.
The Morningstar investment team are only interested in adding US shares to the portfolio if they think they're great, long-term assets. In other words, they have to be wonderful businesses.
Whatever happens in the next few years, I think the companies in the ASX ETF are capable of surviving and thriving. At the top of the holdings list, we're talking about businesses like Zimmer Biomet, Huntington Ingalls Industries, Corteva and Campbell's.
The businesses in this portfolio are among the best on the US stock market. While the outlook is clouded, I think these businesses can still produce solid profit growth if we look ahead five to ten years.
Good value stocks
Every business trades on a different price/earnings (P/E) ratio with differing levels of attractiveness.
The investment team in charge of this ASX ETF only decide to invest if they think the share price is attractive compared to how much they think the underlying business is worth.
So, the MOAT ETF aims to be a fund that owns quality, long-term businesses at good prices.
Since the fund is 'active', the fund manager can take advantage of the lower share prices we're seeing amid indiscriminate selling.
Over the next five to ten years, I think the MOAT ETF has the potential to be among the best ASX ETF performers because of its investment strategy.
