Morningstar Wide Moat Focus Index Index Construction (Part 1/2). Long-term outperformance defines the track record of Morningstar’s success in identifying quality moat companies that are also trading at attractive valuations.
The Morningstar® Wide Moat Focus IndexTM has outperformed the broader U.S. market since its inception in 2007. What is behind the index concept that has achieved such a track record?
This is part one of a two-part series that examines the Morningstar® Wide Moat Focus IndexTM
The Quality and Value of Stocks
Moat Investing is a popular investment strategy based on analysing the quality and value of stocks. Central to the strategy are companies with sustainable competitive advantages – so called Economic Moats. Identifying promising moat companies takes extensive, continuous research and complex financial knowledge. Independent investment research company Morningstar has developed an index that combines their extensive moat analysis and fair value research. The Morningstar Wide Moat Focus Index (MWMFTR or “U.S. Moat Index”) consists of stocks that received a Wide Moat Rating by Morningstar and are trading below fair value – in other words, stocks that are positioned to deliver long-term above-average returns. Serving as underlying for an exchange-traded fund, the index offers an attractive, simple way to invest in quality U.S. companies.
Identifying Wide Economic Moats
The index universe of the MWMFTR is based on the stock universe of the Morningstar US Market Index, which consists of around 1.500 U.S. stocks. From this pool, which equals 97 percent of the total US equity market capitalization, Morningstar determines all companies with a wide Economic Moat: Companies with competitive advantages that are likely to be maintained for 20 years or more. Approximately 140 companies receive a corresponding Morningstar® Economic Moat Rating of Wide. Stocks are screened for five sources of moat. Often, a company possesses more than one source of moat. The most common ones among U.S. companies are: Intangible Assets (74 percent of U.S. stocks with a wide Morningstar® Economic Moat Rating), Cost Advantages (49 percent) and Switching Costs (35 percent). Network effects (18 percent) and an Efficient Scale (11 percent) are less common (Data as of: 30.04.2017 )
Ranking by Valuation
In the second step, Morningstar ranks these 140 identified wide moat companies on the U.S. equity market by valuation. Only attractively rated stocks are considered as potential index components for the U.S. Moat Index. Therefore, Morningstar’s analysts determine a fair value estimate of each company identified as Wide Moat. The focus of the analysis is on evaluating the future potential profitability and assessing the certainty of future cash flows. The estimated fair price is used to represent the intrinsic value of the stock and is directly compared to its market price. The determined fair value estimate might differ sharply from the current market price of a stock, particularly short-term. Over time, this difference tends to even out, turning undervalued stocks into an attractive investment long-term. Stocks whose market price is above the fair value tend to have little prospects of further price gains.
As a result, the index portfolio contains a minimum of 40 up to 80 stocks with a Morningstar Economic Moat Rating of wide. These components are split up into two equally-weighted sub-portfolios, which are both reconstituted and rebalanced semi-annually on alternating quarters. Weights will vary with market prices until the next reconstitution date.
Important Disclosures
This commentary is not intended as a recommendation to buy or to sell any of the named securities. Holdings will vary for the MOAT ETF and their corresponding Indices.
Index performance is not representative of fund performance. To view fund performance current to the most recent month end, visit vaneck.com.
