Starbucks vs. McDonald's as a defensive play Good question. They both have strong moats and brands. He prefers Starbucks--their product offering is stronger. McDonald's is still a fast-food franchise, but a good operation. Starbucks has potential huge growth in China; McDonald's is already there.
He bought it at $65, then sold it $170. They're off 20% from their highs. The stock is well ahead of itself. Yes, he may buy them back, but at what price? They could drop 10-20%. He worried about the impact of a recession, but why hasn't a big tech like Amazon bought them? He kicks himself for selling it.
A mini-ATD'B, both well-run. You can own either. Earnings continue to be good. This will set new highs.
Or a fintech ETF? Mastercard has better return metrics and he prefers MA, but both stocks track closely. He's happy owning just MA, but you can own both or an ETF, depending on your time horizon and risk tolerance.