There aren't many investors more widely known than Warren Buffett. After decades of tremendous investment returns through the company he runs, Berkshire Hathaway, Buffett has made himself a household name.

Because of Buffett's success, many people track his investments to get an idea of where they should invest. The average person's investing priorities may not align with those of a billionaire or a trillion-dollar corporation, but valuable lessons can be learned from their holdings and approach.

Berkshire Hathaway has a stake in over 40 companies, but two in particular right now look like no-brainers for the long term.

1. Amazon

Amazon (AMZN 0.04%) has not-so-quietly become one of the tech world's premier one-stop shops. It may take some time before its net is as wide as Microsoft's or Alphabet's, but it seems well on its way.

Amazon is a stock that Buffett has admitted to being hesitant about initially, but his partners convinced him that Berkshire Hathaway should make the move. Considering Amazon's returns over the past decade, it's a good thing Berkshire did.

Amazon continues to show that it's one of the top cash cows in the business world. In 2024, it generated $638 billion in revenue, up 11% from 2023. Walmart is the only public company that managed to bring in more revenue.

AMZN Revenue (Annual) data by YCharts.

It's not just Amazon's revenue that's impressive -- it's also its profitability over the past few years. For a while, the idea was to generate revenue through e-commerce (even if it was unprofitable or barely profitable), and then use the money to fund more profitable segments like cloud computing with Amazon Web Services (AWS).

Now, all three main segments of Amazon's business are generating billions in operating income (profit from core operations).

Data source: Amazon full-year 2024 results.

Much of Amazon's growth in the near future will likely come from AWS. Cloud computing is a thriving business, and Amazon is leading the charge as the market leader. It's a high-margin business that's in the relatively early stages of what it could become -- especially as artificial intelligence (AI) developments help accelerate adoption.

Amazon has positioned itself as a force beyond just its original e-commerce roots, making it a no-brainer for long-term investors.

2. Visa

Visa (V 0.64%) is one of Berkshire Hathaway's smaller holdings, but few businesses are as rock solid as the payment processing giant. Buffett once said, "The best business is a royalty on the growth of others, requiring little capital itself," and Visa is a prime example.

In line with Buffett's quote, Visa benefits hugely from the network effect. Cardholders want Visa because it's the most widely accepted card globally, and merchants want to (and essentially have to) accept Visa because it's the most widely held card. This network effect has helped Visa grow its reach well beyond what competitors can reasonably replicate.

The second part of Buffett's quote that's relevant to Visa is how it makes most of its money: transaction fees. With the infrastructure already in place, Visa naturally benefits from the growth of commerce and digital payments globally without needing to spend a lot of capital.

Visa's setup has put it in a great financial position. Its revenue is up nearly 180% in the past decade, and its profit margins are higher than most businesses could dream of achieving.

V Profit Margin (Quarterly) data by YCharts.

Many parts of the world still operate in a cash-heavy economy, but card and mobile payment adoption is picking up steam. As more financial infrastructure is put in place globally, Visa will be one of the main beneficiaries of increased transaction volume.

In 2024 alone, Visa processed 310.4 billion transactions, and this number should only grow with time. There could be some dips if people cut back on spending during not-so-ideal economic times, but the long-term trajectory remains strong.

Visa is an investment I'd feel comfortable buying and holding for the long haul.