Buy Like Buffett
Watchlist

CDW CORP

CDW · Consumer Discretionary · $17.3B mkt cap · FY2025 filings · Narrow moat ·

Wonderful & reasonably priced

Narrow moat
Share / Embed this score
Embed this score

The five investor questions

66

2021–2025 (latest 5 aligned FYs; v3 window cap 5): revenue $20.8B to $22.4B, increasing; diluted EPS 7.04 to 8.08, increasing.

23

Median gross margin 17.3% over 10y, stable.

88

Median ROIC 17.3%, above the 12% hurdle in 100% of years.

65

Net debt/EBITDA 2.6x, no material interest expense disclosed.

86

Owner earnings changed +8.1%/yr over up to the ten most recent annual observations.

Price vs. value if growth stopped today

A cautious baseline, not a price target: what the shares may support if normalized owner earnings simply hold steady.

Above value if growth stopped todayBelow value if growth stopped today
27% above value if growth stopped today
$1.2B
$105.66
$171.17
$133.82
27% above value if growth stopped today

What today’s price assumes: owner earnings growing ~5%/yr over 5 years. The zero-growth estimate assumes owner earnings stay flat (0% growth).

How to read this

We solve for the constant annual change in owner earnings that would make the five-year zero-growth estimate equal today’s price. This keeps the existing model inputs and calculation unchanged; it is an expectations lens, not a forecast.

This zero-growth estimate assumes trailing owner earnings persist — unreliable for declining businesses. The recent FY revenue series does not trigger the three-consecutive-declines flag.

Among the current top-score group, the median current price is 239% above the zero-growth estimate across 48 of the current top 50 companies by Moat Score with both values.

Score records captured Jul 26, 2026.

Exactly which 50 companies?

FTNT, META, MEDP, IBEX, MSFT, GOOGL, LULU, ANF, IDXX, TXRH, FHI, QLYS, FFIV, ADBE, LLY, MANH, VEEV, GRMN, SSD, MNST, DOCS, MCO, CPRT, NTAP, LRCX, NVDA, CORT, SFM, MPTI, ULTA, SN, RMD, ROL, PAYC, IRMD, INTU, DECK, MORN, LGCY, DAL, GWW, ISRG, MPWR, CTAS, LOPE, MRK, CMG, FAST, BKNG, ORLY

Missing a usable price or zero-growth estimate: ANF, BKNG.

Model details under moat-index@3.0.0: zero-growth multiple 11.1×, capped-growth comparison at no more than 18×; 9% discount rate; high-end growth 4% (capped at 4%) using min(5y revenue CAGR, 5y diluted-EPS CAGR), clamped to 0%–4%; maintenance capex uses min(capex, D&A); abstain when D&A is unavailable. This is a disclosed model range, not intrinsic value as fact.

18 years of fundamentals

The business, in plain English

CDW CORP booked $22.4B of revenue in FY2025 in the Consumer Discretionary sector and kept 21.7% of it as gross profit — a moderate-margin business by that measure. After every other cost, 4.8% of each revenue dollar reached the bottom line.

Across the filed record, revenue grew from $7.2B (FY2009) to $22.4B (FY2025) — about 7.4% a year compounded over 16 years.

It earned 16.2% on invested capital in the latest filed year, FY2025. Across the full 15-year measurable filed record, median ROIC was 16.1%. Over the v3 recent window (10 measurable filed years), median ROIC was 17.3%. The Returns on Capital filter above scores it 88/100.

The balance sheet carried $5.7B of total debt in FY2025 against $1.2B of owner earnings — roughly 4.5 years of owner earnings to retire it all. Balance-Sheet Safety scores it 65/100.

Put together: Returns on Capital is the strongest of the five filters (88/100) and Pricing Power the weakest (23/100), which is how CDW lands at 66/100 — a Narrow moat.

This breakdown is generated from the filed numbers and sub-scores above — no outside narrative, no estimates. Where a filing doesn’t disclose an input, the sentence that would need it is omitted instead of guessed.

FY2008–FY2025 · 18 fiscal years, normalized from CDW’s SEC filings

Sales, as filed$22.4B FY2025
$0$10B$20B2008201420202025
Revenue kept after cost of goods21.7% FY2025
0%10%20%2008201420202025
Standard ROIC or separately labeled Operating ROICROIC 16.2% FY2025
0%10%20%2008201420202025
Cash an owner could take out$1.2B FY2025
$0$1B2008201420202025

Gaps in a line mean that item isn’t in CDW’s filings for that year. The series is never interpolated or estimated. The Table view lists every filed value, including operating and net margins, total debt, and share count.

Flagship explainer

How CDW CORP makes its money

Start with a dollar of revenue and follow what the filing says remains.

revenueBranching filed flows with values and percentages directly labeled. Missing filing concepts are omitted rather than estimated.Revenue$22.4B · 100%Cost of revenue$17.6B · 78%Gross profit$4.9B · 22%Operating income$1.7B · 7%Income before tax$1.4B · 6%Income tax$361M · 2%Net income$1.1B · 5%As of 2025-12-31 · 1 SEC filing sourceBuy Like Buffett · buylikebuffett.com

Honest partial: the filing did not provide a normalized tag for Research and development, Selling, general and administrative; those components are omitted, not plugged.

Table alternative
Filed lineValue% of revenueSource
$22.4B100%
Cost of revenue$17.6B78%
$4.9B22%
$1.7B7%
Income before tax$1.4B6%
Income tax$361M2%
$1.1B5%
Source: · event Dec 31, 2025 · retrieved Jul 26, 2026 · annual-row source set
Embed this chart

Flagship explainer

What CDW CORP owns — and owes

CDW CORP's filing tags don't support a full breakdown — here's what is filed:

Table alternative
Filed lineValue% of assetsSource
Total assets$16.0B100%
Cash and equivalents$619M4%
$5.7B35%
Stockholders’ equity$2.6B16%
Source: · event Dec 31, 2025 · retrieved Jul 26, 2026 · annual-row source set

Flagship explainer

What drives CDW CORP’s return on equity?

ROE is five filed business factors multiplied together.

DuPont return on equity factor treeReturn on equity branches into tax burden, interest burden, operating margin, asset turnover, and the equity multiplier.Return on equity43%Tax burden75%net income ÷ pretax incomeInterest burden86%pretax ÷ operating incomeOperating margin7%operating income ÷ revenueAsset turnover1.46×revenue ÷ average assetsEquity multiplier6.19×average assets ÷ average equityAs of 2025-12-31 · 2 SEC filing sourcesBuy Like Buffett · buylikebuffett.com
DuPont source inputs
InputValueFiscal yearSource
$1.1BFY2025
Income before tax$1.4BFY2025
Operating income$1.7BFY2025
$22.4BFY2025
Ending assets$16.0BFY2025
Beginning assets$14.7BFY2024
$2.6BFY2025
$2.4BFY2024
Source:
  • SEC filingFiling detailsAccession 0001402057-25-000018
  • SEC filingFiling detailsAccession 0001402057-26-000011
· event Dec 31, 2025 · retrieved Jul 26, 2026 · annual-row source set
Embed this chart

Flagship explainer

Where CDW CORP's cash went

CDW CORP’s filing does not supply enough provenance-matched cash-flow lines for a truthful flow chart — here’s what is filed:

Table alternative
Filed lineValue% of cash from operationsSource
Cash from operations$1.2B100%
Depreciation and amortization$296M25%
Source: · event Dec 31, 2025 · retrieved Jul 26, 2026 · annual-row source set

Curated 19-manager tier

Who reported holding CDW CORP

Delayed public 13F reports for 2026-Q2—not live positions, trades, or recommendations.

0 holding0 exited1 not holding1/19 resolved18 unavailable

Named manager positions and quarter-over-quarter changes
ManagerReported positionQuarter-over-quarterFiling accession
Markel / Markel-GaynerNo position reportedNo position reported
Abrams CapitalUnavailableComparison unavailableFiling unavailable
Akre CapitalUnavailableComparison unavailableFiling unavailable
Baupost GroupUnavailableComparison unavailableFiling unavailable
Berkshire HathawayUnavailableComparison unavailableFiling unavailable
Brave Warrior AdvisorsUnavailableComparison unavailableFiling unavailable
Dodge & CoxUnavailableComparison unavailableFiling unavailable
First EagleUnavailableComparison unavailableFiling unavailable
FundsmithUnavailableComparison unavailableFiling unavailable
Gardner Russo & QuinnUnavailableComparison unavailableFiling unavailable
Gates Foundation TrustUnavailableComparison unavailableFiling unavailable
Mairs & PowerUnavailableComparison unavailableFiling unavailable
Oakmark / Harris AssociatesUnavailableComparison unavailableFiling unavailable
Pershing SquareUnavailableComparison unavailableFiling unavailable
Polen CapitalUnavailableComparison unavailableFiling unavailable
Sequoia / Ruane CunniffUnavailableComparison unavailableFiling unavailable
Southeastern Asset ManagementUnavailableComparison unavailableFiling unavailable
Tweedy, BrowneUnavailableComparison unavailableFiling unavailable
Yacktman Asset ManagementUnavailableComparison unavailableFiling unavailable

Position size uses shares and filed value from each manager’s 13F. Portfolio weight uses the eligible long-share filing denominator. Changes compare only with the immediately preceding calendar quarter.

Source: · event Jun 30, 2026 · retrieved Jul 26, 2026

Flagship explainer

What CDW CORP insiders reported

Records still being gathered — partial as of retrieval Aug 19, 2026.

Partial coverage: the incomplete Form 4 walk cannot establish no activity, an activity date, or zero counts.

Moat Score history

16 logged readings since Jul 17, 2026 · append-only, never rewritten

Moat Score over timeLast scored reading of each day, on the 0–100 scale65.6 / 100
0406080100WideNarrowShallowNo moatJul 17, 2026Jul 26, 2026

Breaks in the line mark methodology or normalizer upgrades — readings across versions aren’t compared, so a level shift there isn’t a change in the business.

Tier changesSame-methodology and same-normalizer crossings of the Wide / Narrow / Shallow bars

  1. Normalizer upgraded unstamped (version unknown)moat-xbrl-normalizer@1.1.0 — readings across versions aren’t comparedJul 26, 2026
  2. Methodology upgraded moat-index@2.0.0moat-index@3.0.0 — readings across versions aren’t comparedJul 23, 2026
  3. Methodology upgraded moat-index@1.2.0moat-index@2.0.0 — readings across versions aren’t comparedJul 20, 2026

Scores are logged append-only and never overwritten — this record cannot be reconstructed retroactively, which is exactly why it’s worth keeping.

Insider activity

Form 4 reports mix P/S market or private transactions with compensation-plan mechanics. Activity casually described as “insider selling” can include compensation mechanics; awards, tax withholding, and option exercises are shown by their exact filed class here, never collapsed into “Bought” or “Sold.”

These are disclosed filing facts and arithmetic aggregates, not a signal or verdict.

This machine-readable surface covers SEC ownership filings from 2003; it does not represent earlier paper-era records.

Records still being gathered — partial as of retrieval Aug 19, 2026.

Among the rows shown, A/F/M acquisition, payment or withholding, and exercise or conversion rows outnumber S sale rows (4 versus 1). The filing codes alone do not establish that every such row arose from a compensation plan.

Trailing-12-month totals and the 90-day cluster result are withheld because this issuer walk is incomplete.

InsiderShares owned afterDateFiling detail
CONNELLY ELIZABETH H.See RemarksExercise or conversion of derivative security (M)Table I · Acquired · Common Stock, par value $0.01 · 2 paired events26,695$97.0435$2,590,577See lot detailAug 7, 2026
2 filed lots
  • Table I · Common Stock, par value $0.01: 11,795 shares at $95.57 · code M · owned after 46,010.46 · Paired event: 11,795 Employee Stock Option (Right to Buy) → 11,795 Common Stock, par value $0.01 ·
  • Table I · Common Stock, par value $0.01: 14,900 shares at $98.21 · code M · owned after 60,910.46 · Paired event: 14,900 Employee Stock Option (Right to Buy) → 14,900 Common Stock, par value $0.01 ·
CONNELLY ELIZABETH H.See RemarksOpen-market or private sale (S)Table I · Disposed · Common Stock, par value $0.0126,695$137.62$3,673,76634,215.46Aug 7, 2026
1 filed lot
  • Table I · Common Stock, par value $0.01: 26,695 shares at $137.62 · code S · owned after 34,215.46 ·
CONNELLY ELIZABETH H.See RemarksExercise or conversion of derivative security (M)Table II · Disposed · Employee Stock Option (Right to Buy) · 2 paired events26,695—Exercise or conversion of derivative security (M)—See lot detailAug 7, 2026
2 filed lots
  • Table II · Employee Stock Option (Right to Buy): 11,795 shares at — (Exercise or conversion of derivative security (M)) · code M · owned after 0 · Paired event: 11,795 Employee Stock Option (Right to Buy) → 11,795 Common Stock, par value $0.01 ·
  • Table II · Employee Stock Option (Right to Buy): 14,900 shares at — (Exercise or conversion of derivative security (M)) · code M · owned after 0 · Paired event: 14,900 Employee Stock Option (Right to Buy) → 14,900 Common Stock, par value $0.01 ·

Source-event as of . Retrieved .

Consumer Discretionary context

#100 of 487 scored Consumer Discretionary companies, ranked by Moat Score.

Nearest peers by Moat Score

  1. #98BJRI BJ’S RESTAURANTS, INC.66.5Narrow moat
  2. #99VC VISTEON CORP66.1Narrow moat
  3. #101SHAK SHAKE SHACK INC.65.5Narrow moat
  4. #102PSMT PriceSmart, Inc.65.3Narrow moat

Compare CDW with its nearest peers →All Consumer Discretionary companies on the Index →

Common questions about CDW

Does CDW CORP have an economic moat?
Based on its FY2025 SEC filings, the Moat Index scores CDW CORP (CDW) 65.6 out of 100 — a Narrow moat. The five questions behind that score begin at 20% each; if exactly one genuinely lacks data, the other four weights are renormalized and disclosed. revenue and EPS trend 66, pricing power 23, returns on capital 88, balance-sheet safety 65, capital allocation 86.
Is CDW trading below the conservative owner-earnings estimate?
The value if growth stopped today — a zero-growth baseline — is $105.66 per share. It capitalizes normalized owner earnings at a 9% rate and assumes 0% growth. Versus a recent price of $133.82, that is 27% above value if growth stopped today. The model also publishes a capped-growth comparison, but the zero-growth estimate is the cautious baseline. It assumes trailing owner earnings persist and is unreliable for declining businesses. This is an educational estimate from primary SEC filings, not intrinsic value as a fact or investment advice.
How has CDW's Moat Score changed over time?
The record logs 16 readings since Jul 17, 2026; the latest reads 65.6 out of 100 (narrow moat). No tier changes on record yet. (Methodology or normalizer upgrades on Jul 20, 2026, Jul 23, 2026, Jul 26, 2026 re-based the score; readings across versions aren't compared.) The history is append-only — readings are only ever added, never rewritten.

Scored from primary SEC filings via the public methodology. Educational only — not a recommendation to buy or sell CDW. See the disclaimer.