A wide-moat stock is a company stock that maintains market leadership through a premium product, brand value, or corporate strategy. The company’s dominance in the market relative to its competitors makes it a solid investment idea. Hence, it is known as a wide-moat stock because just as a moat would safeguard forts in the medieval era, the company’s robust market standing, product value, and strong reputation protect its stock from plummeting during different market cycles.
A wide-moat stock can sustain its market power by patenting and licensing its products, which makes duplication and substitutes harder to come by. This would also add barriers to entry within the industry and keep competition in check, which creates long-term profits for wide-moat stocks.
An economic moat is not just a momentary market edge; it is rather a sustainable competitive advantage that enables a company to stay ahead of industry rivals for a long time. Warren Buffett shed some light on moats, saying:
“We’re trying to find a business with a wide and long-lasting moat around it, surrounding and protecting a terrific economic castle—with an honest lord in charge of the castle … For one reason or another, it can be because it’s the low-cost producer in some area. It can be because it has a natural franchise [or] because of its service capabilities, its position in the consumer’s mind, [or] because of a technological advantage. For any kind of reason at all, it has this moat around it.”
With that in mind, let’s take a look at the 10 best wide moat stocks to buy that are also on Wall Street’s radar.
Pixabay/Public Domain
Our Methodology
We analyzed the VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat ETF and identified 10 stocks that received coverage from Wall Street analysts and mainstream media outlets between June 7 and 9. These wide moat stocks were also favored by top hedge funds in the first quarter of 2025, as per Insider Monkey’s Q1 2025 database.
Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 373.4% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 218 percentage points (see more details here).
Best Wide Moat Stocks To Buy Now
10. Brown-Forman Corporation (NYSE:BF-B)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 37
Brown-Forman Corporation (NYSE:BF-B) is one of the best wide moat stocks to buy now. On June 9, UBS analyst Peter Grom maintained a Neutral rating on Brown-Forman and slashed the price target from $38 to $30. The price target was amended after the company disclosed challenges at the end of FY2025, with future forecasts suggesting that these issues will persist.
Brown-Forman Corporation (NYSE:BF-B)’s Q4 results and outlook for the next year fell short of Street estimates. The company’s financial outcomes triggered investor concerns about the present hindrances and whether they will continue in the future or remain a temporary setback.
The analyst commented that before the Q4 results, investors believed that the biggest headwinds had already been priced into the stock, and the possible cost cutting might result in more profits. However, the actual earnings were not aligned with this optimism, leading people to rethink the company’s long-term growth potential.
Despite the share price drop, Brown-Forman Corporation (NYSE:BF-B)’s valuation is promising, trading at roughly 17x the earnings, which is less than its 5-year average of about 33x. While the valuation is attractive, the analyst noted that the stock will potentially remain within a specific range until more compelling data emerges about future revenue growth.
Brown-Forman Corporation (NYSE:BF-B) is a leading American producer of premium alcoholic beverages, known for iconic brands like Jack Daniel’s, Woodford Reserve, and Herradura.
Hedge Fund Resource Center