Backtest · 2018 cohort
The widest moats of 2018, scored with only what was filed then.
Scored as of 2018-12-31 from the 10-Ks on file at that date — no later restatements, no hindsight. 1,309 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, 2019.
| # | Company | Moat | As-of score | 1-yr return | 3-yr return | 5-yr return |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | BIOGEN INC.BIIBfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 100.0 | −3% | −20% | −12% |
| 2 | THE CHEESECAKE FACTORY INCORPORATEDCAKEfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 100.0 | −7% | −6% | −12% |
| 3 | INTUIT INC.INTUfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 100.0 | 38% | 232% | 221% |
| 4 | Medifast, Inc.MEDfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 100.0 | −9% | 87% | −33% |
| 5 | F5, INC.FFIVfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 100.0 | −13% | 51% | 9% |
| 6 | PRICE T ROWE GROUP INCTROWfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 97.8 | 40% | 133% | 41% |
| 7 | Capri Holdings LtdCPRIfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 97.1 | −2% | 69% | 29% |
| 8 | ResMed Inc.RMDfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 96.7 | 41% | 139% | 61% |
| 9 | THE BOSTON BEER COMPANY, INC.SAMfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 96.2 | 58% | 121% | 44% |
| 10 | MYRIAD GENETICS, INC.MYGNfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 96.0 | −6% | −3% | −34% |
| 11 | Intuitive Surgical, Inc.ISRGfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 96.0 | 28% | 132% | 113% |
| 12 | Arista Networks, Inc.ANETfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 96.0 | −3% | 170% | 340% |
| 13 | COPART, INC.CPRTfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 94.9 | 96% | 208% | 299% |
| 14 | Starbucks CorporationSBUXfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 93.9 | 42% | 92% | 61% |
| 15 | MORNINGSTAR, INC.MORNfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 93.7 | 41% | 216% | 165% |
| 16 | Veeva Systems Inc.VEEVfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 93.7 | 64% | 193% | 116% |
| 17 | C.H. ROBINSON WORLDWIDE, INC.CHRWfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 93.3 | −4% | 39% | 18% |
| 18 | Estee Lauder Companies IncELfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 92.6 | 58% | 187% | 16% |
| 19 | Omega Flex, Inc.OFLXfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 92.6 | 105% | 147% | 41% |
| 20 | Proto Labs, Inc.PRLBfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 92.6 | −9% | −51% | −66% |
| 21 | TEXAS INSTRUMENTS INCORPORATEDTXNfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 92.5 | 41% | 119% | 106% |
| 22 | NU SKIN ENTERPRISES, INC.NUSfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 92.2 | −31% | −5% | −59% |
| 23 | ALIGN TECHNOLOGY, INC.ALGNfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 92.0 | 40% | 221% | 33% |
| 24 | NetApp, Inc.NTAPfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 91.8 | 8% | 69% | 66% |
| 25 | INTEL CORPINTCfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 91.4 | 32% | 22% | 16% |
| 26 | Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc.CBRLfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 91.4 | 1% | −11% | −42% |
| 27 | lululemon athletica inc.LULUfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 91.4 | 89% | 214% | 310% |
| 28 | DELUXE CORPDLXfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 90.8 | 31% | −8% | −32% |
| 29 | Monster Beverage CorpMNSTfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 90.8 | 31% | 98% | 140% |
| 30 | Data I/O CorporationDAIOfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 90.7 | −14% | −7% | −39% |
| 31 | FACTSET RESEARCH SYSTEMS INC.FDSfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 90.5 | 36% | 146% | 143% |
| 32 | HEALTHEQUITY, INC.HQYfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 90.1 | 22% | −21% | 12% |
| 33 | WD-40 COMPANYWDFCfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 90.0 | 10% | 42% | 46% |
| 34 | FASTENAL COFASTfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 90.0 | 49% | 161% | 184% |
| 35 | ADVANCE AUTO PARTS, INC.AAPfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 90.0 | 1% | 53% | −58% |
| 36 | S&P Global Inc.SPGIfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 89.4 | 65% | 179% | 169% |
| 37 | ALARM.COM HOLDINGS, INC.ALRMfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 89.4 | −17% | 61% | 22% |
| 38 | AMBARELLA, INC.AMBAfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 89.1 | 74% | 500% | 67% |
| 39 | WILLIAMS-SONOMA, INC.WSMfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 88.9 | 49% | 262% | 357% |
| 40 | Lifevantage CorpLFVNfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 88.9 | 19% | −49% | −50% |
| 41 | DULUTH HOLDINGS INC.DLTHfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 88.9 | −62% | −40% | −79% |
| 42 | SLEEP NUMBER CORPORATIONSNBRQfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 88.2 | — | — | — |
| 43 | GLOBUS MEDICAL, INC.GMEDfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 87.7 | 50% | 87% | 34% |
| 44 | UNITED-GUARDIAN, INC.UGfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 87.5 | 14% | 4% | −49% |
| 45 | USANA HEALTH SCIENCES, INC.USNAfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 87.4 | −33% | −12% | −53% |
| 46 | TANDY LEATHER FACTORY, INCTLFfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 87.4 | −4% | −14% | −22% |
| 47 | Apple Inc.AAPLfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 86.9 | 93% | 375% | 390% |
| 48 | UTAH MEDICAL PRODUCTS INCUTMDfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 86.9 | 27% | 21% | 7% |
| 49 | Inogen IncINGNfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 86.9 | −45% | −72% | −95% |
| 50 | INTERPARFUMS, INC.IPARfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 86.7 | 13% | 69% | 135% |
| 51 | Anika Therapeutics, Inc.ANIKfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 86.7 | 52% | 6% | −34% |
| 52 | Cirrus Logic, Inc.CRUSfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 86.6 | 148% | 174% | 138% |
| 53 | JOHN WILEY & SONS, INC.WLYfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 86.0 | 5% | 32% | −23% |
| 54 | JACK HENRY & ASSOCIATES, INC.JKHYfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 86.0 | 19% | 43% | 40% |
| 55 | RALPH LAUREN CORPORATIONRLfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 85.9 | 15% | 21% | 54% |
| 56 | MSC INDUSTRIAL DIRECT CO., INC.MSMfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 85.8 | 8% | 38% | 77% |
| 57 | Axon Enterprise, Inc.AXONfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 85.8 | 70% | 239% | 458% |
| 58 | 3M COMPANYMMMfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 85.7 | −3% | 3% | −30% |
| 59 | Dorman Products, Inc.DORMfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 85.6 | −15% | 25% | −7% |
| 60 | Booking Holdings Inc.BKNGfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 85.6 | 20% | 43% | 102% |
| 61 | Snap-on IncSNAfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 85.5 | 17% | 56% | 123% |
| 62 | EPAM SYSTEMS, INC.EPAMfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 85.4 | 89% | 462% | 155% |
| 63 | IDEXX LABORATORIES INC /DEIDXXfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 85.1 | 45% | 246% | 200% |
| 64 | UNITED THERAPEUTICS CorpUTHRfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 84.9 | −19% | 96% | 111% |
| 65 | VERA BRADLEY, INC.VRAfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 84.9 | 34% | −2% | −15% |
| 66 | DECKERS OUTDOOR CORPDECKfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 84.8 | 33% | 184% | 421% |
| 67 | IPG PHOTONICS CORPIPGPfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 84.8 | 28% | 51% | −7% |
| 68 | Paycom Software, Inc.PAYCfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 84.8 | 127% | 238% | 72% |
| 69 | Cognex CorporationCGNXfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 84.7 | 47% | 107% | 10% |
| 70 | Accenture plcACNfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 84.7 | 51% | 202% | 165% |
| 71 | SKYWORKS SOLUTIONS, INC.SWKSfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 84.6 | 83% | 147% | 77% |
| 72 | TYLER TECHNOLOGIES, INC.TYLfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 84.5 | 68% | 187% | 124% |
| 73 | Five Below, Inc.FIVEfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 84.4 | 22% | 99% | 106% |
| 74 | GILEAD SCIENCES, INC.GILDfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 84.0 | 7% | 29% | 60% |
| 75 | COLGATE-PALMOLIVE COMPANYCLfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 83.7 | 18% | 53% | 54% |
| 76 | GARMIN LTDGRMNfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 83.7 | 61% | 129% | 130% |
| 77 | WEX Inc.WEXfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 83.7 | 54% | 4% | 41% |
| 78 | GENTEX CORPORATIONGNTXfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 83.5 | 48% | 83% | 73% |
| 79 | ULTA BEAUTY, INC.ULTAfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 83.5 | 3% | 67% | 96% |
| 80 | Carter's, Inc.CRIfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 83.3 | 38% | 30% | 5% |
| 81 | ADOBE INC.ADBEfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 83.1 | 49% | 151% | 158% |
| 82 | O Reilly Automotive IncORLYfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 83.1 | 28% | 104% | 177% |
| 83 | Simulations Plus, Inc.SLPfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 83.0 | 45% | 155% | 131% |
| 84 | OneSpan Inc.OSPNfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 83.0 | 36% | 34% | −18% |
| 85 | SPOK HOLDINGS, INC.SPOKfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 82.9 | −7% | −19% | 68% |
| 86 | TRACTOR SUPPLY CO /DE/TSCOfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 82.8 | 15% | 197% | 184% |
| 87 | PEGASYSTEMS INC.PEGAfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 82.8 | 71% | 132% | −1% |
| 88 | AUTOZONE INCAZOfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 82.4 | 42% | 144% | 206% |
| 89 | AbbVie Inc.ABBVfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 82.1 | 6% | 77% | 126% |
| 90 | WINGSTOP INC.WINGfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 82.0 | 38% | 194% | 351% |
| 91 | Corpay, IncCPAYfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 81.8 | 55% | 25% | 52% |
| 92 | TRIPADVISOR, INC.TRIPfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 81.8 | −37% | −41% | −56% |
| 93 | GRACO INC.GGGfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 81.7 | 28% | 96% | 118% |
| 94 | HASBRO, INC.HASfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 81.3 | 35% | 39% | −26% |
| 95 | PETMED EXPRESS, INC.PETSfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 81.2 | 6% | 28% | −60% |
| 96 | ALPHABET INC.GOOGLfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 81.1 | 30% | 175% | 162% |
| 97 | HOME DEPOT, INC.HDfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 81.0 | 31% | 154% | 126% |
| 98 | AMERICAN EAGLE OUTFITTERS INCAEOfrom FY2018 10-K | Wide moat | 80.9 | −24% | 39% | 22% |
| 99 | POOL CORPORATIONPOOLfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 80.7 | 48% | 287% | 180% |
| 100 | NORTHROP GRUMMAN CORP /DE/NOCfrom FY2017 10-K | Wide moat | 80.7 | 47% | 65% | 107% |
| Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.B, total return)benchmark · total return (same basis) | — | — | 13% | 48% | 79% | |
| S&P 500 (price return)benchmark · price return | — | — | 30% | 91% | 89% |
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.