Walk like a man
Talk like a man
Walk like a man my son
– The Four Seasons
There’s a movement happening in this country: Manliness is back.
It may have started a few years ago when hipster doofuses who wouldn’t know an axe from a body spray started showing up in trendy bars looking like lumberjacks.
But it really all came together in the recent U.S. presidential election.
From 2020 to 2024, there was a 29-percentage-point swing toward Donald Trump among men aged 18 to 29. Despite Joe Biden winning that demographic by 15% in 2020, Trump won it by 14% in 2024.
What would cause such a stark shift?
Young men are increasingly being economically marginalized. The percentage of men aged 25 to 34 who are not in the labor force is nearly double what it was in 2000.
Trump capitalized on their growing displeasure, as well as their desire for manly leadership. In perhaps the pivotal moment of the campaign, a bleeding Donald Trump – just moments after surviving an assassination attempt – put his fist in the air and urged his supporters to fight. It resonated big-time.
Since the election, I’ve been seeing a lot more manly ads online – aspirational photos and videos of ripped, middle-aged, blue-collar-looking dudes offering up everything from auto parts to life coaching.
I suspect this trend is going to continue as America transitions from fretting about pronouns to being more macho.
And there will be ways to profit from it.
What’s more manly than drinking whiskey? Sure, women drink it too (I know a few who can really put some drinks away), but there’s something about sitting on a barstool, looking the barkeep in the eye, and grunting “bourbon” that says you’re a man.
Brown-Forman (NYSE: BF-B) makes several whiskey brands, including Woodford Reserve bourbon, Slane Irish whiskey, and Jack Daniels. It also makes the popular tequila Herradura.
The company is expected to grow earnings by 146% over the next decade. The stock also has a 2.4% dividend yield.
(Now, the U.S. surgeon general did just call for alcohol to come with cancer warnings like cigarettes do. But everyone already knows alcohol is bad for us. All this announcement will do is inspire a bunch of sarcastic toasts to the surgeon general.)
If there’s one thing that’s more manly than whiskey, it’s guns.
And with Republicans in charge of the White House and Congress, there is zero chance of any new gun legislation in the next few years.
Between now and 2030, gun sales are projected to grow from $8.7 billion to $12 billion.
American Outdoor Brands (Nasdaq: AOUT) was spun off from gun maker Smith & Wesson (Nasdaq: SWBI). The company offers several types of guns, as well as other outdoor products.
This microcap stock has a price-to-sales ratio below 1, is cash flow positive, and is followed by almost no one on Wall Street, giving investors an opportunity to get in before the crowd.
I was going to go to trucks for my last category, but I’m not a fan of Ford (NYSE: F), General Motors (NYSE: GM), or most other automakers.
Instead, I’m going to hogs. No, not the kind you make bacon from… the ones you ride on the open road.
Harley-Davidson (NYSE: HOG) has had a tough go of it lately, as revenue has been pretty flat for the past two years. That’s expected to change, though, as earnings are forecast to surge by double digits annually over the next two years and rise 161% over the next decade.
Meanwhile, the stock trades at just seven times earnings, eight times forward earnings, and a ridiculously low four times cash flow. It also pays a 2.3% yield.
I expect this “manliness movement” to last for a few years, so there will be a number of brands and sectors that will outperform as a result.
Of course, the manliest thing you can do is to take care of your family by investing for the long term. After that, I’ll see you at the bar, at the range, and on the road.