3 No-Brainer Warren Buffett Stocks to Buy Right Now

Are you looking to reload your portfolio with a handful of new stock picks? There’s certainly no shortage of names to choose from. And if you need help determining which are worth owning, why not limit your options to tickers already approved by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A -6.74%) (BRK.B -6.89%)? After all, Berkshire has a decades-long track record of picking winning stocks.

With that as the backdrop, here’s a closer look at three of Berkshire’s top holdings that would be at home in almost anyone’s portfolio as well. These choices are no-brainer options to consider.

1. Chevron

If you think the increasing use of alternative energy has the oil and gas industry on its deathbed, think again. Solar may be the single fastest-growing source of energy, but for all the growth we’ve seen from solar, wind, and geothermal power thus far, the U.S. Energy Information Administration reports that — when including the use of automobiles — petroleum and natural gas still meet more than 70% of the country’s total need for power. And that need just continues growing, keeping established fossil-fuel power plants operational.

The same dynamic also applies overseas. That’s why Goldman Sachs believes the planet’s net need for crude oil will likely continue growing for another decade, and even then will hold relatively steady at least until 2040, with only a relatively gradual tapering off in consumption from that point.

This is arguably the chief reason that Buffett has stuck with Chevron (CVX -8.37%) through several ups and downs since first stepping into the stock in 2020. Although Berkshire Hathaway has bought and sold some of its stake in the meantime, the energy giant is still the conglomerate’s fifth-biggest holding.

Chevron stock’s impressive dividend pedigree keeps the Oracle of Omaha interested, too. The company has paid one every quarter like clockwork for decades and has now raised its annual dividend payment for 38 consecutive years. Newcomers will be plugging into Chevron stock while its forward-looking dividend yield stands at an attractive 4.1%.

2. Amazon

Berkshire Hathaway first took a stake in e-commerce powerhouse Amazon (AMZN -3.92%) in 2019. Buffett has typically avoided flashy technology companies — particularly ones with business models that weren’t always easy to explain, yet somehow easy to replicate.

And it’s not as if he’s holding a massive stake. The 10 million Amazon shares Berkshire Hathaway currently owns are only worth around $2 billion, or less than 1% of the company’s entire stock portfolio. Nevertheless, it’s there for a reason, no matter how small the position.

That’s arguably because Amazon makes more sense to Warren Buffett than most of the dot-com names did when he was broadly eschewing tech in the late 1990s. It wasn’t clear then what many of those unprofitable technology companies did or how they would ever turn a profit; several of their valuations were downright nutty.

Amazon is hardly an enigma, though. It’s North America’s king of e-commerce, selling more consumer goods online than any other player in the business. And it does so at a profit. It also rents access to cloud-based storage and computing platforms, which generate nearly 60% of the company’s operating income. All of it is still growing, too.

But the real reason you might want to follow Buffett sooner than later is because shares are trading down 26% from February’s peak, offering a rarely seen degree of discount that may not last much longer.

3. American Express

Lastly, add credit card name American Express (AXP -5.38%) to your list of no-brainer Warren Buffett stocks to buy right now.

It’s not the only credit card stock to consider owning. In fact, Berkshire Hathaway also holds positions in Mastercard as well as Visa. However, Buffett appears to be far more confident in American Express than he is in either of these rivals, given that it has become Berkshire’s second-biggest holding behind Apple. Its 151.6 million shares of Amex are worth a little more than $40 billion, or roughly 14% of the total value of the conglomerate’s stock holdings. That alone speaks volumes.

The bold bullishness makes sense when you drill down into AmEx and how it’s different from its competitors.

On the surface, it’s categorized as a credit card name, but that doesn’t do the company justice. It would be more accurate to view American Express as a perks and rewards program that centers its service around payment cards.

Supporting this are the millions of consumers and corporations alike that are willing to pay roughly $700 per year to use an American Express card in exchange for access to airport lounges, credit toward hotel stays and flights, cash back on a range of digital media subscriptions, and even rewards points on the purchase of groceries. To some heavy-spending consumers, the cost of these cards can easily pay for itself.

So even if it’s not completely bulletproof, AmEx appeals to a more affluent crowd that’s at least a little better-shielded from economic headwinds than the average consumer is. That small nuance could make a big difference if current concerns about the economy turn into outright realities.