Power Law Investing Podcast - McDonalds - Episode 001

Hosts: Porter Stansberry and Whitney Tilson

Welcome to the Power Law Investing Podcast – a bold monthly discussion about companies that historically drive the lion’s share of returns in the equity markets.

Hosts Porter Stansberry and Whitney Tilson discuss the core drivers behind the world’s greatest brands and explore the history, investment potential, and shareholder value of the stocks you must own forever.

Following the Power Law Distribution of historical stock returns, Porter and Whitney dive into the operations, finances, customers, and strategies that make each company a world-class investment and provide a specific recommendation on what price to pay to ensure long-term compounding gains.

In this episode, Porter and Whitney discuss fast-food giant McDonald’s (MCD), one of the most iconic and wealthiest brands in the consumer cyclical sector.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

How the Power Law Distribution delivers the best long-term compounding stocks, with 10x to 90x historical returns on companies like McDonald’s, Netflix, and Costco
How McDonald’s is much more a world-class real estate business than a burger joint – it has generated 2,827% returns (compounded annual returns of 17%) over 16 years.
The critical decisions by Ray Kroc that have endured and made McDonald’s one of the top-performing U.S. companies over the last seven decades
The No. 1 thing that McDonald’s could do right now to improve returns for investors
How Whitney turned a 2003 purchase of MCD shares into one of his best-performing investments
The specific price Porter is willing to pay for MCD shares in the event of another financial crisis or market downturn
Lessons from Charlie Munger, Bill Ackman, and other top investors

This first episode sets the tone for many great discussions to come. Each month, we will provide the names of companies generating exponential returns to add to your watchlist as opportunities emerge in the near future.