The Oracle of Omaha's preferred length of time to hold an investment is "forever" -- which is quite a long holding period. If that sounds like a tall order, have no fear. It's perfectly fine to consider following Buffett into a couple of his stock positions as long as you're willing to be as patient as he is and refrain from selling for quite some time.

So here are two Buffett stocks that should be high on your list of candidates. 

1. Johnson & Johnson

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ -1.15%) only accounts for around 0.02% of Buffett's portfolio, but it's a strong example of how and why his investing strategy is successful over time. Traditionally, this behemoth competes in consumer health goods as well as pharmaceuticals and medical devices, selling things like Aveeno moisturizers and Tylenol at retail outlets, while marketing its medicines like its COVID-19 vaccine to hospitals and clinics.

Its consumer-targeted products experience highly reliable levels of demand, which is doubtlessly one of the factors that Buffett prefers in his investments. After all, you're probably not going to buy more shampoo or moisturizer next year than you did this year. But for potential investors there's something else to consider now; in 2023, the company will spin off its consumer health goods division, leaving two businesses in its wake.

One company will inherit the J&J name and do pharmaceutical research and development (R&D), which is a riskier yet more growth-oriented activity than the other company's domain of selling consumer health products. In the business as it is today, its pharma segment is a big part of the reason why the company grew its trailing-12-month net income by 76.5% over the past 10 years, topping $19.1 billion.

So investors who buy shares now can continue to have their cake (consistent, low-risk growth from the consumer unit) and eat it too (moderately paced growth from the remaining units) as they'll get ownership of both entities when the spinoff happens -- and there is no problem with holding both of them.

Furthermore, astute investors recognize that Johnson & Johnson's plodding bottom-line expansion is how it can afford to sustainably hike its dividend year after year, a trend that management of both businesses are likely to continue after the spinoff. Since late December of 2002, its dividend has risen by more than 450%, and it's also a member of the elite Dividend Kings, with a history of 60 consecutive annual hikes and counting.

If you're willing to buy a few shares and hold them for the next 20 years or an even longer Buffett-esque duration, your combined quarterly payment from J&J and the consumer health company could well rise by a similar proportion. Just don't be too surprised if the pair don't beat the market's return every year.

2. Apple

Apple (AAPL 0.52%) is Warren Buffett's single largest holding, accounting for around 42% of his company's portfolio. It's also the world's largest public company with a market capitalization in excess of $2.1 trillion. You're doubtlessly familiar with its cash-cow technology products like the iPhone, and recent years have seen its streaming service take off to become a competitor with other heavyweights like Netflix. And the strongly recurring demand for its offerings is one of the reasons it's likely appealing to Buffett. 

Apple has several drivers to keep consumers coming back for its products and to keep them paying for services. The first is the obsolescence cycle in which its computers, phones, and other peripherals require replacement once every few years. By inching up prices while realizing efficiencies that pushed down its cost of goods sold (COGS) as a proportion of its revenue over time, it increased its trailing net income by 139% in the past 10 years, reaching a sum of nearly $100 billion.

Its subscription services are also handy for propeliing earnings as exclusive content encourages customers to keep their membership active even if prices rise or if competitors drop prices. The economic moat that Apple has as a result of its brand and its product ecosystem is exactly the type of competitive advantage that Buffett likely appreciates.

Another factor that Buffett probably likes is that Apple is legendary for its aggressive returning of shareholder capital in the form of dividends and share repurchases. Its payout grew by 143% in the last 10 years alone, and since 2012, the company has repurchased an astonishing $554 billion worth of shares.

There's no indication that management plans to disrupt the pace of buybacks anytime soon. You can expect Apple to keep giving shareholders larger and larger dividends while also reducing the number of outstanding shares. And over the next 20 or 30 years, that should make investors significantly richer -- and you can bet that Buffett appreciates this powerful benefit to the stock.