These four companies are on my watch list and I love them all. There are plenty of reasons to love my Dubya's; WD-40 (WDFC), Washington Mutual (WM), Wells Fargo Bank (WFC), and Wrigley (WWY) and I would be delighted to own them all...that is if Warren does not beat me to them.
They all pay higher than average dividends, have little or no debt, long illustrious histories, proven successful management, profitability, clear understandable businesses, and much more. I currently own Washington Mutual in my Roth IRA. Warren Buffett owns Wells Fargo and it has been reported he may be buying more. WD-40 and Wrigley are exactly the type of companies that Buffett would buy out in their entirety at the right price.
It is important to have a watch list because companies like these are not often on sale. Like Mr. Buffett I always want to buy at bargain prices. It is possible to make money buying them when they are not on sale but why not have the margin of safety (an important Benjamin Graham concept); there is no rush. Some of the companies/stocks I purchased in the last year were not available at bargain prices for many years prior. PATIENCE, PATIENCE--I watched Federal Express, UPS and Starbucks sadly wanting in but not having the right opportunity.
Comparing our Great Eight: AAPL, EBAY, GOOG, GE, MSFT, TWX, WMT, YHOO
Only GE would hold up to the 4-W's list, although I believe WMT is currently of interest to Buffett. To be fair our GREAT-8 do have many fine qualities including first class management, strong brands, and good products. However four pay no dividend and three pay under average dividends. Several have relatively short histories (track record baby!) and TWX & MSFT have not shown clear sustainable ideas for growth that are understood by the markets.
Disclosure: I bank at Wells (not exclusively) which started because they are in the office building where I work, and I continued to expand the relationship because they offer a broad program of services that are well integrated and because of the fine service provided by Sherry, Sonja & others.
And if you have not read my post on dividends go read it! : my original post
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