Backtest · 2017 cohort
The widest moats of 2017, scored with only what was filed then.
Scored as of 2017-12-31 from the 10-Ks on file at that date — no later restatements, no hindsight. 1,224 companies scored; the table lists the 100 widest by as-of moat composite. The forward returns below were joined afterward: entry is the first market close on or after Jan 1, 2018.
| # | Company | Moat | As-of score | 1-yr return | 3-yr return | 5-yr return |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | THE CHEESECAKE FACTORY INCORPORATEDCAKEfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 100.0 | −10% | −23% | −28% |
| 2 | INTUIT INC.INTUfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 100.0 | 24% | 140% | 155% |
| 3 | F5, INC.FFIVfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 100.0 | 22% | 33% | 9% |
| 4 | Capri Holdings LtdCPRIfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 99.7 | −39% | −37% | −10% |
| 5 | BIOGEN INC.BIIBfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 98.6 | −9% | −27% | −18% |
| 6 | Medifast, Inc.MEDfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 97.5 | 78% | 189% | 86% |
| 7 | THE BOSTON BEER COMPANY, INC.SAMfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 96.2 | 24% | 401% | 70% |
| 8 | AMBARELLA, INC.AMBAfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 96.0 | −42% | 47% | 28% |
| 9 | Arista Networks, Inc.ANETfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 96.0 | −9% | 23% | 109% |
| 10 | S&P Global Inc.SPGIfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 95.6 | 2% | 104% | 109% |
| 11 | PRICE T ROWE GROUP INCTROWfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 95.2 | −9% | 56% | 24% |
| 12 | NU SKIN ENTERPRISES, INC.NUSfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 95.0 | −9% | −11% | −28% |
| 13 | ResMed Inc.RMDfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 94.7 | 33% | 157% | 157% |
| 14 | NetApp, Inc.NTAPfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 94.7 | 10% | 27% | 26% |
| 15 | Intuitive Surgical, Inc.ISRGfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 94.6 | 24% | 113% | 112% |
| 16 | C.H. ROBINSON WORLDWIDE, INC.CHRWfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 94.3 | −6% | 10% | 13% |
| 17 | Proto Labs, Inc.PRLBfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 94.2 | 7% | 45% | −76% |
| 18 | ALARM.COM HOLDINGS, INC.ALRMfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 94.2 | 38% | 167% | 31% |
| 19 | Smart Sand, Inc.SNDfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 94.1 | −74% | −79% | −81% |
| 20 | Starbucks CorporationSBUXfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 93.3 | 14% | 90% | 94% |
| 21 | TANDY LEATHER FACTORY, INCTLFfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 92.6 | −21% | −57% | −40% |
| 22 | COPART, INC.CPRTfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 92.5 | 9% | 177% | 182% |
| 23 | ALIGN TECHNOLOGY, INC.ALGNfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 91.7 | −10% | 134% | −5% |
| 24 | MORNINGSTAR, INC.MORNfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 91.7 | 13% | 146% | 134% |
| 25 | IRADIMED CORPORATIONIRMDfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 91.7 | 58% | 48% | 90% |
| 26 | Omega Flex, Inc.OFLXfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 91.6 | −20% | 123% | 44% |
| 27 | JACK HENRY & ASSOCIATES, INC.JKHYfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 91.4 | 8% | 41% | 60% |
| 28 | GILEAD SCIENCES, INC.GILDfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 91.2 | −12% | −10% | 40% |
| 29 | Estee Lauder Companies IncELfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 91.1 | 5% | 106% | 108% |
| 30 | lululemon athletica inc.LULUfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 91.0 | 55% | 347% | 306% |
| 31 | Monster Beverage CorpMNSTfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 90.9 | −22% | 44% | 62% |
| 32 | DELUXE CORPDLXfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 90.8 | −48% | −59% | −72% |
| 33 | Gartner, Inc.ITfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 90.8 | 1% | 27% | 170% |
| 34 | USANA HEALTH SCIENCES, INC.USNAfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 90.5 | 56% | 4% | −27% |
| 35 | Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc.CBRLfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 90.3 | 6% | −11% | −29% |
| 36 | HEALTHEQUITY, INC.HQYfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 90.3 | 27% | 48% | 31% |
| 37 | WD-40 COMPANYWDFCfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 90.2 | 55% | 131% | 50% |
| 38 | DULUTH HOLDINGS INC.DLTHfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 90.0 | 35% | −43% | −68% |
| 39 | UTAH MEDICAL PRODUCTS INCUTMDfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 89.9 | 8% | 10% | 33% |
| 40 | ADVANCE AUTO PARTS, INC.AAPfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 89.4 | 49% | 50% | 52% |
| 41 | WILLIAMS-SONOMA, INC.WSMfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 89.2 | −2% | 113% | 145% |
| 42 | Tapestry, Inc.TPRfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 89.2 | −22% | −21% | −2% |
| 43 | Veeva Systems Inc.VEEVfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 89.1 | 59% | 398% | 190% |
| 44 | GLOBUS MEDICAL, INC.GMEDfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 88.8 | −8% | 47% | 69% |
| 45 | TEXAS INSTRUMENTS INCORPORATEDTXNfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 88.5 | −8% | 67% | 77% |
| 46 | ALPHABET INC.GOOGLfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 88.5 | −2% | 61% | 66% |
| 47 | V. F. CORPORATIONVFCfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 88.3 | −2% | 31% | −54% |
| 48 | UNDER ARMOUR, INC.UAAfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 88.3 | 18% | 15% | −33% |
| 49 | FASTENAL COFASTfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 87.0 | −3% | 91% | 99% |
| 50 | OneSpan Inc.OSPNfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 86.7 | −9% | 52% | −18% |
| 51 | Axon Enterprise, Inc.AXONfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 86.7 | 70% | 340% | 534% |
| 52 | AWARE, INC.AWREfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 86.6 | −18% | −23% | −62% |
| 53 | Anika Therapeutics, Inc.ANIKfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 86.5 | −37% | −22% | −46% |
| 54 | COLGATE-PALMOLIVE COMPANYCLfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 86.2 | −19% | 21% | 19% |
| 55 | Cirrus Logic, Inc.CRUSfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 85.9 | −36% | 58% | 36% |
| 56 | SLEEP NUMBER CORPORATIONSNBRQfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 85.9 | — | — | — |
| 57 | Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc.SWBIfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 85.8 | −2% | 78% | −8% |
| 58 | Apple Inc.AAPLfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 85.6 | −7% | 212% | 205% |
| 59 | EPAM SYSTEMS, INC.EPAMfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 85.5 | 5% | 221% | 206% |
| 60 | THE SHERWIN-WILLIAMS COMPANYSHWfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 85.2 | −4% | 80% | 81% |
| 61 | O Reilly Automotive IncORLYfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 85.2 | 37% | 82% | 237% |
| 62 | Carter's, Inc.CRIfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 84.8 | −30% | −18% | −30% |
| 63 | Paycom Software, Inc.PAYCfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 84.8 | 49% | 432% | 279% |
| 64 | 3M COMPANYMMMfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 84.7 | −17% | −20% | −38% |
| 65 | Snap-on IncSNAfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 84.7 | −15% | 2% | 47% |
| 66 | UNITED THERAPEUTICS CorpUTHRfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 84.7 | −29% | 1% | 80% |
| 67 | NORTHROP GRUMMAN CORP /DE/NOCfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 84.7 | −18% | 1% | 92% |
| 68 | IPG PHOTONICS CORPIPGPfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 84.4 | −48% | −2% | −57% |
| 69 | Five Below, Inc.FIVEfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 84.4 | 51% | 142% | 149% |
| 70 | Cognex CorporationCGNXfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 84.3 | −37% | 36% | −18% |
| 71 | TYLER TECHNOLOGIES, INC.TYLfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 84.3 | 2% | 142% | 79% |
| 72 | AUTOZONE INCAZOfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 84.3 | 14% | 60% | 230% |
| 73 | TERADATA CORP /DE/TDCfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 84.1 | −2% | −42% | −13% |
| 74 | IDEXX LABORATORIES INC /DEIDXXfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 83.9 | 16% | 212% | 157% |
| 75 | INTERPARFUMS, INC.IPARfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 83.7 | 53% | 42% | 142% |
| 76 | UNITED-GUARDIAN, INC.UGfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 83.4 | 10% | −6% | −23% |
| 77 | GENTEX CORPORATIONGNTXfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 83.3 | −2% | 68% | 43% |
| 78 | Accenture plcACNfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 83.2 | −7% | 75% | 89% |
| 79 | TRACTOR SUPPLY CO /DE/TSCOfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 83.0 | 10% | 92% | 216% |
| 80 | IMAX CorporationIMAXfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 83.0 | −19% | −24% | −37% |
| 81 | Simulations Plus, Inc.SLPfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 83.0 | 29% | 393% | 147% |
| 82 | Booking Holdings Inc.BKNGfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 83.0 | −4% | 21% | 14% |
| 83 | ULTA BEAUTY, INC.ULTAfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 82.5 | 8% | 23% | 105% |
| 84 | CHEMED CORPORATIONCHEfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 82.4 | 12% | 116% | 109% |
| 85 | Lifevantage CorpLFVNfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 82.4 | 171% | 97% | −20% |
| 86 | ZIFF DAVIS, INC.ZDfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 82.3 | −6% | 31% | 26% |
| 87 | HERBALIFE LTD.HLFfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 82.3 | 72% | 44% | −57% |
| 88 | HASBRO, INC.HASfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 82.2 | −11% | 9% | −22% |
| 89 | Genesco Inc.GCOfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 82.0 | 28% | −20% | 28% |
| 90 | AMERICAN EAGLE OUTFITTERS INCAEOfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 81.6 | 4% | 11% | −15% |
| 91 | MYRIAD GENETICS, INC.MYGNfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 81.5 | −17% | −43% | −56% |
| 92 | MSC INDUSTRIAL DIRECT CO., INC.MSMfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 81.5 | −20% | 4% | 12% |
| 93 | STRYKER CORPSYKfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 81.4 | −1% | 57% | 65% |
| 94 | Data I/O CorporationDAIOfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 81.3 | −57% | −66% | −67% |
| 95 | NCR VOYIX CORPORATIONVYXfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 81.1 | −32% | 4% | −32% |
| 96 | AmpliTech Group, Inc.AMPGfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 81.0 | — | — | — |
| 97 | AbbVie Inc.ABBVfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 81.0 | −6% | 24% | 108% |
| 98 | TRIPADVISOR, INC.TRIPfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 80.9 | 56% | −8% | −41% |
| 99 | RALPH LAUREN CORPORATIONRLfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 80.7 | 3% | 2% | 15% |
| 100 | GARMIN LTDGRMNfrom FY2016 10-K | Wide moat | 80.7 | 9% | 117% | 79% |
| Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.B, total return)benchmark · total return (same basis) | — | — | 3% | 16% | 57% | |
| S&P 500 (price return)benchmark · price return | — | — | −7% | 37% | 42% |
Two benchmarks, and we’re careful about the basis. Company returns are total returns (dividends reinvested). Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.B, total return) is on the same total-return basis — the fair, like-for-like comparison (Berkshire pays no dividend, so its dividend-adjusted and price series coincide). The S&P 500 (price return) is a price index that excludes dividends and so understates the market by roughly its dividend yield — shown for reference, not as a fair bar. A “—” is an unfinished forward window or a name without joined returns, never a zero. Where a name stopped trading mid-window it reports null with a note, never a guessed return.
The caveats, in the engine’s own words
- Point-in-time reconstruction: each score uses only SEC filings on file by Dec 31 of the cohort year; restatements filed later are ignored, and filers with December fiscal year-ends are scored off the prior fiscal year (their 10-K arrives the following spring).
- Survivorship bias: unless delisted companies were ingested explicitly by CIK, the cohort is drawn from companies still filing with the SEC today — names that failed or delisted since are missing, which flatters any forward-looking comparison. Companies whose filings had already gone stale at the cutoff are computed but excluded from the ranking (the stale count). The same caveat extends to returns: a name that stopped trading mid-window reports null with a note, never a guessed return through its delisting. Price histories are keyed by each company's ticker symbol as of today; a symbol that changed hands between issuers during a window can misattribute price history.
- Scores are business-quality only: no prices feed them, so valuation, margin of safety, and price-dependent verdicts are absent. Forward returns are a separate join of market data made after scoring and never influence any score.
- Forward returns start strictly after the information cutoff: entry is the first trading close on or after Jan 1 of the year following the cohort year, and each 1y/3y/5y window runs anchor-to-anchor to the first trading close of the corresponding later year. Windows that have not fully elapsed are null — never annualized or extrapolated from a partial period.
- Return basis honesty: company returns are total returns (split-adjusted closes with dividends reinvested at the ex-date); the S&P 500 benchmark is the ^GSPC price index, which excludes dividends and therefore understates the index by roughly its dividend yield in any comparison. A second benchmark, Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.B), is computed on the SAME total-return basis as the companies — Berkshire pays no dividend, so its dividend-adjusted series equals its price series, and the same code path is used so the comparison is strictly like-for-like. Each record labels its own returnBasis.
- Educational, not investment advice. Hindsight makes every backtest look wiser than anyone could have been at the time.