Warren Buffett's stock selection criteria revealed: Why does Costco (COST) catch his eye?

Recently, an interesting discovery was made—according to the investment master strategy scoring, COST scored 79 points using Buffett's "patient investor" model. This model mainly considers three points: whether the company's earnings are stable, whether the debt is light, and whether the valuation is reasonable.

How is COST performing? It has passed in all 7 core indicators including profit forecast, debt management, asset return, cash flow, and share buyback. The only downside is that the initial return rate did not meet expectations, but the expected return is still acceptable.

In simple terms, companies like COST fit Buffett's preference for "long-term cash cows"—large-cap growth stocks, retail industry, solid fundamentals, and reasonable valuations. A score above 80 is considered of strategic interest, while above 90 is a key focus. COST's score of 79 is a signal that it is "near the passing line and worth in-depth research."

A lesson for retail investors: Instead of following the crowd and chasing highs, why not learn from this 80-year-old gentleman on how to pick stocks—focus on the company's long-term value creation ability, rather than short-term price increases.