What Buffett-style stocks are you buying right now? I’m sharing mine + my investing philosophy

S&P500 is down 4% YTD. Nasdaq is down 10% YTD. The Ukraine war is still going on. The US and Israel vs Iran. The street of Hormuz is closed. Oil price rising to extreme levels again. Inflation up to 2.4%. Everywhere, the media is screaming doom and gloom through their headlines like the apocalypse is coming... well, we have the "SaaSapocalypse." So, I thought, let's create a post on how to fight against those crazy times once again, and what kind of companies should we buy? I'll rank this to what I believe from best to worst.

**Core investment philosophy**

1. They need to have a moat. It protects them in their pricing power and margins
2. Must offer high returns in growth and invested capital. High ROIC equals business quality. The ability to reinvest equals a compounding machine. Quality equals growth + predictability.
3. Simple, predictable businesses that gush free cash flow
4. Management with a high degree of integrity. Bad management destroys great businesses. Integrity equals intelligence.
5. Strong financial profile. We're looking for low debt, high margins (compared to peers), and a strong balance sheet that is gushing free cash flow
6. Limited exposure to external factors we cannot control. Think about businesses that operate in regulatory industries or commodities.
7. Pay a fair price for attractive valuations. Warren Buffett made this clear: *“It’s far better to buy a wonderful company at a fair price than a fair company at a wonderful price."*
8. US businesses. This is the least important principle. It's more of a practical reference.

**Developments within Q1**

* I had an interest in and purchased Microsoft, Visa, Amazon, and Meta. I believe that the market valuations that are shown in the underlying stock prices are creating opportunities in a misunderstood narrative about AI. They are weighted at 15%, 18%, 9% and 12% of the portfolio.
* We initiated a position in Ulta Beauty on May 20th of 2024 and exited for a 30% annualized return after fees on January 28th of 2026. The reason we exited is due to better opportunities elsewhere. I still believe this is a great business with a long growth runway, but we needed cash for potential future better returns that should turn in our favor.
* YTD, our portfolio is down 1.25%, which is almost 3 percentage points better than the S&P500.
* Centene is down 37%. This business was a mistake in a simple, predictable business valuation. Looking at the fundamentals, the business is punished due to regulatory opinions and pricing, which should improve in the medium to long term.

The undervaluation of those businesses (MSFT, V, AMZN and META), their share prices due to AI fears compared to their long term upside potential is not in sync. Strong balance sheets and high margins provide significant financial flexibility.

Our portfolio received an influx of $4,608, with a 3-year maturity and a WACC of 5.70%. Our debt-to-equity ratio is 0.45. Our target is to aim for ≤0.7–0.8 D/E, and keep interest and principal comfortably covered by operating cash flow. The operating cash flow is estimated for 2026 to be around $7,000.

I added debt due to facilitating opportunities in recent market conditions. I can also react faster on market downturns or overreactions. We are not aiming for margin leverage.

Another income stream for our portfolio is the business I work for. This is a cyclical venture so the income influx is higher during spring and summer, and lower in fall and winter. Whenever there are no opportunities in the market, we will pay down our debt on a regular basis to improve our financial position.

Feel free to ask questions in the comment section below.

**Note**\*\*\*: I understand people are wary about getting into debt for buying securities. However, I feel comfortable doing this as I have a background in entrepreneurship. As an entrepreneur, you get into debt to expand a business so you can earn more money. When you do this sensibly and with caution, you're always ahead in the game. Now, this is explained very simply. I am also surrounded by very smart people around me who are wealthy, and they explained to me a couple of things about money and wealth accumulation. I also understand this might not be well responded too, but I give it a shot anyway. I also understand Reddit users are a different breed but I see alot of questions regarding investing so... this is my response. And much more will follow in the future.\*\*\*