Sep 25, 2026 · 1h 8m
Listen from 23:24
Listen at 23:24
Boyar finds opportunity in hated stocks and compressed valuations
People Hate These 5 Stocks But They'll Be Wrong with Jonathan Boyar
The discussion tests whether unpopular companies are genuinely impaired or merely mispriced after forced selling, AI fears, and multiple compression.
- 1Buy-and-hold investing still requires active judgment about business quality, competition, valuation, and market conditions.
- 2Programmatic selling can push unrelated companies lower, creating opportunities when durable businesses remain intact.
- 3Boyar favors unpopular companies including Uber, Broadridge, Booking, Airbnb, Pool Corp, Burger King, Comcast, MGM, and Vici Properties.
Don't miss
Boyar’s case for Uber crystallizes the episode’s central distinction between a broken stock and a broken business.
The brief
Jonathan Boyar joins Josh Brown and Michael Batnick to argue that buy-and-hold is not passive: investors must continually reassess execution, competition, valuation, concentration, and underperformance.
The conversation reframes market-wide selloffs as possible research opportunities, especially when automated baskets and hedge-fund forced selling push unrelated businesses lower together.
Boyar’s favored examples include Uber, Broadridge, Booking, Airbnb, and Pool Corp, where AI fears, post-COVID normalization, or valuation compression may obscure durable economics.
The discussion broadens to Burger King, Comcast, MGM, and Vici Properties, testing whether hated consumer businesses and casino assets offer enough valuation support to offset real risks.
The standout tension is simple but consequential: a weak stock can reflect a broken business, or a sound business temporarily rejected by the market.
What was said on this episode
50 statements · 33 positive · 14 negative · 2 mixed · 1 neutral
Buy-and-hold is an outcome of successful investing, not a standalone strategy.
“Buy and hold, I don't think it ever worked. I kind of reject the premise of buy and hold. I think buy and hold- is a result of an investment strategy, not an investment strategy in and of itself.”
Listen at 6:16
Investors should hold attractive companies while continuously reevaluating execution, competition, and valuation.
“if you are a good stock picker and you're able to find great companies and buy it at a reasonable or an attractive price, hold on to it, but continuously reevaluate it.”
Listen at 6:32
Coca-Cola’s extreme valuation led to substantial subsequent underperformance.
“Great business, terrible valuation. And since then, it dramatically underperformed the S&P 500”
Listen at 9:12
Concentrated positions can be acceptable for individual investors.
“I think that concentration is okay.”
Listen at 10:47
Investors usually benefit most from avoiding unnecessary portfolio changes.
“Most of the time, doing nothing is the best thing someone can do.”
Listen at 11:26
Most stocks will not outperform the S&P 500 over time.
“Most stocks are not going to outperform the S&P 500.”
Listen at 13:31
Traditional deep-value investing has become associated with broken retail businesses.
“That world is gone. If you're a deep value investor, you're investing in broken retailers.”
Listen at 15:28
Boyar seeks durable, dominant, or unique businesses that can be held for many years.
“I want to buy something. that I can hopefully, I mean, it's impossible. No one can tell five, 10 years in the future, but you have the chance of owning it for five, 10, 15 years, a great business, a dominant business or something that's unique.”
Listen at 15:45
Investors should avoid buying stocks that remain in uncontrolled declines.
“You don't want to get in front of a freight train. That's just a recipe to lose money.”
Listen at 17:00
Investors cannot reliably identify a stock’s exact price bottom.
“no one's ever going to be able to pick a bottom. It's impossible.”
Listen at 17:38
Travel stocks can offer buying opportunities despite temporarily poor charts.
“you had an opportunity to buy some of these travel stocks for idiotic reasons that the chart didn't look good. But I'm like, why not take a chance on these?”
Listen at 17:46
Buying stocks at 60-times earnings makes generating returns difficult.
“It's hard to make money if you buy a stock at 60 times earnings.”
Listen at 19:49
Walmart’s 40–50-times earnings valuation makes an investment case difficult.
“I think Walmart's 40, 50 times earnings. It's crazy. It's hard to make an investment case.”
Listen at 19:57
Boyar is avoiding Nike because easier investment opportunities exist.
“So I, it's one that I have just passed on. You could make a lot of money from here. I think there are a lot easier ways to make money.”
Listen at 23:09
Booking and Airbnb’s basket-driven decline will become a strong buying opportunity.
“And this will turn out to be, I think, a great buying opportunity.”
Listen at 25:14
Forced selling creates attractive entry points for short- and long-term fundamental investors.
“I think this creates opportunities. I think it creates opportunities for very short-term oriented people who kind of look at fundamentals and people like myself who are looking three, five, ten years down the line because you're able to get these great entry points.”
Listen at 28:33
Boyar remains bullish on Uber, MSG Sports, and Atlanta Braves Holdings.
“I think my Uber, I still love. MSG Sports and Atlanta Braves Holdings, great stocks.”
Listen at 29:10
Uber’s stock is unlikely to remain depressed if earnings grow 20–30% annually.
“I think it's almost impossible if it's going to continue growing at 20% to 30% a year for the stock to stay the way it is.”
Listen at 30:05
Investors should hold Uber because its business fundamentals are strong.
“you have a great business, and this is one that you hold on to. I think this is an example of a buy and hold. because the fundamentals of the business are great.”
Listen at 30:17
Uber should prioritize business investment, retain cash, and repurchase as much stock as possible.
“they should put whatever they do they need to invest in the business and have a little cash cushion and then just buy stock. as much as they possibly can.”
Listen at 31:11
Uber is executing well and its stock will eventually be rewarded.
“They're executing. They're doing everything right. At some point, they'll be rewarded. I think the bear case is silly.”
Listen at 31:50
Holding through Uber’s current weakness will ultimately be worthwhile.
“I think the pain will be well worth it.”
Listen at 34:25
Stocks with compressed multiples and stable-to-improving businesses offer investors attractive setups.
“The businesses are fine to improving. And I think investors have a great setup.”
Listen at 35:23
Higher interest rates do not necessarily prevent stocks from performing well over three-to-four-year periods.
“I think it's not a valid conclusion to draw if you take a three or four-year period because we've been. Stocks have done well in those type of interest rates environments.”
Listen at 36:23
Multiple compression reflects interest rates, AI threats, and lingering COVID effects.
“I don't think you can pin it to one thing. I think that's a significant factor. I think the AI threat on some of these names is another reason. I still think in certain businesses, there's still COVID hangover as well”
Listen at 36:57
Regulated, deeply embedded businesses are attractive because customers need them.
“We like these companies that are ingrained in regulatory. heavy businesses that they're needed.”
Listen at 38:06
Broadridge is essentially a monopoly.
“It's essentially a monopoly.”
Listen at 38:15
Broadridge’s catalyst could be investors realizing AI and tokens will not destroy its business.
“the catalyst will be. people finally realizing AI or tokens are not going to kill their business.”
Listen at 41:24
Fears that AI will displace Booking are based on a poor rationale.
“this is a really dumb rationale.”
Listen at 42:16
AI travel agents will use Booking, making AI adoption positive for the company.
“they're going to use booking this is a positive for booking not of”
Listen at 42:54
Muse cannot easily replicate Booking’s global travel inventory.
“Muse doesn't have inventory. Do you know how hard it is to get inventory throughout the world to do this? Muse just can't like snap their fingers.”
Listen at 44:21
AI travel-agent developments will benefit Booking rather than harm it.
“I think this is going to be a positive, not a negative for the business.”
Listen at 44:50
AI disruption fears concerning Airbnb are nonsensical.
“these things are nonsensical.”
Listen at 46:20
Individual investors can better tolerate volatility with a two-to-four-year horizon.
“if you're able to really tell yourself you're going to have that two, three, four view, it's much easier as an individual.”
Listen at 46:43
Lower oil prices would significantly benefit Airbnb.
“if oil going down, I think will be significantly beneficial for the company”
Listen at 47:28
Pool Corp trades near 15-times earnings, a valuation Boyar considers cheap enough.
“Now you're buying it at 15 times earnings, which is roughly what it's cheap enough.”
Listen at 50:41
Pool Corp is currently very cheap.
“But it is a. Cheap, cheap stock now.”
Listen at 52:35
Pool Corp is a high-quality business with substantial recurring maintenance revenue.
“This is a great business. As you said, I don't want to say it's an annuity-like business, but it's close. There's a lot of maintenance revenue there.”
Listen at 53:31
Patrick Doyle has performed very well as Restaurant Brands’ executive chair.
“Patrick Doyle has done a great job.”
Listen at 54:04
Burger King North America is currently undergoing a turnaround.
“Burger King North America is now in a turnaround phase. And they're in the middle of the turnaround.”
Listen at 56:03
Burger King’s same-store sales improved and its recovery is roughly halfway complete.
“Now same-store sales have improved. They're basically halfway through the recovery that McDonald's is just starting.”
Listen at 56:20
Restaurant Brands has built a strong business offering investors a 3–4% yield.
“I think they've built a great business that they're getting paid a 3%, 4% yield while they wait.”
Listen at 56:49
Comcast’s broadband business faces substantial competition from fixed wireless and Starlink.
“But the broadband business is a tough, tough business. You're going to have lots of competition, fixed wireless. You're going to have Starlink, et cetera”
Listen at 58:18
Comcast’s valuation at five-to-six-times EBITDA is relatively cheap.
“But at five or six times EBITDA. It's pretty cheap.”
Listen at 58:30
Investors should avoid businesses that consumers strongly dislike.
“One of the things I think I've learned is to not buy businesses or look at businesses that are hated by consumers.”
Listen at 59:17
StubHub could generate returns but is not among Boyar’s preferred investments.
“Could you make money? Yes. Is it our favorite? No.”
Listen at 59:41
MGM is a strong business trading near 16-times earnings, and Diller may renew his bid.
“I think the one that we have a view on is MGM, which is down about 10% today because Diller pulled his bid. I think he's going to come back. He had a $48 bid. Now it's going to be $38. Now it's $33 a share. He tried to buy it through IAC. That's a great business selling at not demanding multiple here. I think it's trading at about 16 times.”
Listen at 1:01:15
BetMGM will remain financially healthy despite sports-betting regulation.
“I think BetMGM is going to be just fine.”
Listen at 1:03:06
Investors should size MGM positions according to the stock’s risks.
“there's enough other things to like. And I think that's what Josh talked earlier about position sizing. I think that's one of the things that you have to do is look at the risk of a stock and size it accordingly.”
Listen at 1:03:57
Boyar sees many current investment opportunities.
“there are a lot of opportunities out there.”
Listen at 1:06:28
Statements are attributed to the speaker as said on the episode and reflect their view at the time, not PodLume's. They are not advice.
