Berkshire Hathaway's recent decision to scoop up another 75 million shares of Apple shows yet again — Berkshire already held 165.3 million shares — that Apple is one of the few tech companies that fits into Warren Buffett's investment philosophy.
Buffett's investment model has many components, of course, but Apple almost alone among big tech companies fits it well.
It's easy to see where Apple makes money
Buffett has frequently stated that he's a fan of investing in efficient companies that are run as simply as possible. Apple fits the bill. There's no guessing where it makes money: iPhones, iPads, Macs, services. "Here's a company with, whatever their earnings are, $60 billion, and you can put all their products on a dining room table," Buffett told CNBC's Becky Quick.
Plus, CEO Tim Cook has long been lauded as a master of the supply chain, which means he's good at getting millions of products built in an effort to meet overwhelming demand.
Apple's management thinks long term
Buffett likes companies with long-term strategies. "Nobody buys a farm based on whether it's going to rain next year," he said on CNBC's "Squawk Box." "They think it's a good investment over 10 or 20 years." That's why he doesn't worry about quarterly iPhone sales, even if Apple misses, because he's more interested in Apple's growth over the next decade.
Also, Apple's no longer just an iPhone company. The company's wearables business, which didn't even exist several years ago, is now the size of a Fortune 300 business and has no real competition. Its "services" business, which includes the App Store, iCloud, Apple Music and more, is also growing at a rapid rate.
"I see how strong that ecosystem is, to an extraordinary degree. … You are very, very, very locked in, at least psychologically and mentally, to the product you are using. [IPhone] is a very sticky product," Buffett said in February of the iPhone and Apple's ecosystem.
Apple's products can survive bad management
Apple's products and services are so popular they have the potential to survive bad management. Buffett thinks investing in a good business is better than investing in good management. Apple currently has both.
"If you've got a good enough business, if you have a monopoly newspaper, if you have a network television station — I'm talking of the past — you know, your idiot nephew could run it," Buffett once said of his investment in Moody's, of which he knew nothing about the management. "And if you've got a really good business, it doesn't make any difference."
Buffett bets on America
Buffett likes to invest in American companies. His largest holdings as of February included Wells Fargo, Apple, Bank of America and Coca-Cola. Buffett said last year that he believes America has the "secret sauce."
"It doesn't work all the time perfectly," Buffett said, "but you just look at where we go, milestone after milestone. Never bet against America."
