In this episode of Industry Focus: Financials, host Jason Moser and Fool.com contributor Matt Frankel, CFP, dig into two major stories in the real estate sector.
First, they look at how badly hotel REITs are hurting and which are the best for long-term investors. Then they talk about the fact that some retailers have said they won't pay rent during closures, while one major mall operator has said rent is still expected, setting up a battle between the two sides. Plus, they discuss why they think Bank of America (BAC +0.50%), Square (SQ +1.88%), Ameris Bank (ABCB +0.94%), and Mastercard (MA +1.76%) could be great buys right now.
To catch full episodes of all The Motley Fool's free podcasts, check out our podcast center. To get started investing, check out our quick-start guide to investing in stocks. A full transcript follows the video.
This video was recorded on March 30, 2020.
Jason Moser: It's Monday, March 30th. I'm your host Jason Moser, and on today's Financials show, we're going to take a look back at the recent Millionacres and Mogul member event, talk about some of the hot topics of discussion there in the world of real estate investing, and we're also going to take a look at REIT Taubman Centers. So, the real estate investment trust is telling tenants that rent is due, while insurance companies are trying to figure out their own way through today's crisis.
And because we're glass half full guys here on Industry Focus, you know us, we've got four stocks that investors should keep on their radar through these turbulent times. Joining me, as always, this week remotely, as we all, are certified financial planner, Matt Frankel. Matt, how's everything going?
Matt Frankel: Pretty good. I've been used to this remote thing for a few years now; are you starting to get used to it a little bit?
Moser: [laughs] Well, I don't know that I'm used to it, I think I'm really impressed with how it works, it's a nice little set up, I mean, nothing's perfect, but it's a really nice alternative knowing that we have this available when we need it. So, this whole thing has thrown a monkey-wrench in, I think, everybody's plans and routines and work schedules and whatnot, but it's really nice to be able to keep some semblance of normalcy here, man. I'm happy that we can still do this.
Frankel: Yeah, we're both very fortunate that we're still plugging away.
Moser: Yeah, and that's, golly, I'm sure, you know, with the family at home every day and everybody just trying to, kind of, work through this. We reiterate with our daughters every day, you know, listen to me, we are in a good situation, we're fortunate, there are a lot of other people that are not as fortunate right now.
It is just always worth remembering, this is a trying time not only nationally, but really, globally. I mean this is something that has just taken the whole world by storm, unfortunately. And it's not something that's going to end anytime soon. I think it's something that's going to probably be a little bit more drawn-out than some people might hope. But by the same token, you know when I was thinking about this over the weekend, I think a lot of good will ultimately come from this and I think there's a lot of innovation and ideas and new ways of thinking, hopefully, empathy and understanding that come from all of this. You know, it goes back to that glass half full thing, right?
Frankel: Yeah, I think there will be a lot of good that comes through it. It's a great time to get some more exercise compared to what you normally do. And I'm starting a new diet plan; you probably see my shake bottle in the video. Those are best for times when you can just kind of put your life on pause and that's, you know, we got the opportunity to do that for the most part.
I heard a bunch of reports that pollution is way down around the world and you know things like that, so there is some silver lining here.
Moser: Yeah. And you know what another thing I noticed. And this is just neither here nor there, I guess, but I just noticed that our bank account isn't draining quite as quickly as it usually does. There's just not as much spending going on. That much is clear, I think, just from looking at the state of the economy, but, man, you take a look at your checking account, all of a sudden, you realize, "Dang! we're not really spending a whole heck of a lot of money right now." So, you know what we're doing, we're saving it.
Frankel: Yep, and, well, investing more, more precisely.
Moser: Well, that too. We're investing and we're saving and we're trying to plan for the future, right? You always got to figure something's coming down the pike here that'll make you wish you were prepared. And so, if you are fortunate enough to see that maybe your bank account isn't being drained as quickly, well, hopefully, you're able to put some of that money aside and put a reserve together and maybe get some of that money working for you, because it certainly is a good time to get it working.
Although, we were talking about this before we started taping, it's really difficult to make sense of this market today and what's going on.
Frankel: Yeah, it's going to be a bumpy road for a while. And we'll get into what we're talking about in a minute, but here's, kind of, one I want to leave you. I described the market volatility and the reason for it to somebody recently in this way. About two weeks ago, Elon Musk tweeted out that the coronavirus panic is dumb, if you remember that.
Moser: I do remember that, yeah.
Frankel: Then a little while later, the Governor of California came out and said that he's expecting a million deaths or something like that in his state alone, even though that there is a pretty much a full lockdown in all the major cities. So, the truth is probably somewhere between this is dumb and there's a million deaths in one state. The fact that we don't know where in the middle it is, is the reason the markets are going so crazy, just nobody knows at this point. If you tell everybody this is going to end May 1st, you're going to have X number of deaths, X amount of unemployment ... then it would be a little more stable, but we just simply have no idea at this point.
Moser: Yeah, I think that's right. And given that way of thinking, I think it's fair to assume that we'll probably see more of this type of behavior in the market, I think really for the foreseeable future. So, as we always [...] with our Foolish style of investing, I mean, we look at things with a much longer timeline, three to five years, if not longer, investing in good businesses. I think these are the times that really support that philosophy. And I would encourage folks out there, don't worry about calling the market bottom. Don't try to figure out, is this the bottom or things only going to go back up now? Because No. 1, chances are, it's probably not, but even if it is, it doesn't really matter in the grand scheme of things, you want to just keep on finding good businesses.
Frankel: And I should say that Elon Musk did walk back his comments a little bit and he's kind of helping in the effort now instead of just poking fun at it, so.
Moser: Yeah. Well, and I think a lot of us probably initially -- I mean, certainly, I know in the very beginning of this, it was hard to really wrap your mind around something could be this serious, I mean I think I honestly felt like --
Frankel: Right. So, given those two extremes, it's probably closer to a serious situation than this is dumb, so. And I'm pretty sure everybody's on board, everyone gets the seriousness of this at this point. The point is, we don't know exactly how serious it is.
Moser: And a good lesson there, there's a great investing lesson there is, you need to keep an open mind and be willing to change your mind when the facts change and as soon as more facts come to light and the picture becomes more clear, you need to be open to changing your mind and maybe taking on new way of looking at things. And so, hopefully, that's what people are doing here, and continue to be safe out there.
But enough about the state of affairs today, let's talk about what went on recently. Matt, you all had your Millionacres and Mogul member event. Now, this was something that was initially set to take place in California. Obviously, plans changed, and thankfully, you all were still able to hold the event virtually. How did everything go?
Frankel: It's good. We actually canceled the in-person version about a month before. So, I say, we canceled before it was trendy to cancel stuff, we were kind of industry leaders there. And at the time people didn't understand why we were cancelling and then as it got closer, yeah, oh. But it was supposed to be in San Diego, it was supposed to be my first time in California actually. I've never been. But you know, the times being what they are, it was definitely the right call.
We ended up doing a virtual event. My part was pretty much just going over our REIT recommendations and kind of the state of the REIT industry. Because we keep telling members how during tough times real estate performs pretty well, and that's just simply has not been the case. You know, real estate, it's a physical place, people have to physically go to it for it to make sense as a business and people aren't going anywhere right now and it's just a situation, no one, including our members, could have planned for.
But one of the most encouraging things I heard from members -- so, it was pretty much a live Q&A -- is that people weren't, like, mad that our recommendations have done poorly, they weren't, you know, "You guys suck! you recommend bad stocks." It's been more, "What's the best thing to buy right now?" Which is such a great attitude. I think we made 11 recommendations so far out of those, which are the best ones to buy, which one should you be loading up on and taking advantage? And that was overwhelmingly the attitude of the members, so that was definitely an encouraging sign to see.
Moser: That is a very encouraging sign. I mean, that's right in line with that Warren Buffett mentality of being a net buyer of stocks, right. I mean, if you're going to be buying more than you're selling than you need to look at these times as the opportunities, so that says a lot about the job that you guys are doing there and setting appropriate expectations and setting that right investing mentality. So, good work there to you and the team.
Now, specifically, you know, we were talking about this before we started taping, you mentioned that hotel REITs have been a real hot topic of conversation lately. I'm not exactly sure why, but I'm hoping that you'll tell us. What is the interest there specifically with hotel REITs?
Frankel: Well, for one thing, most hotels are closed down right now. So, I talked about the uncertainty going on a little while ago and how we just don't know how bad this is yet. And hotels are really bearing the brunt of that right now.
Just to name one, I recently bought a company called Ryman Hospitality Properties, I mentioned them on the show before. They own the Gaylord chain of hotels. There's one right there in D.C., I think you guys had Fool Fest there one year, if I'm not mistaken, or somewhere near there, but it's right on the National Harbor. They have five Gaylord hotels nationwide that are just landmark properties. I think three of them are actually the three biggest non-gaming convention centers in the country. So, you know, big landmark properties.
They're closed right now. They were down to something like a single-digit occupancy rate, at which point it's probably costing them more to keep the places open than to just close them. So, they made this painful but correct decision to close their properties indefinitely recently. But they're a company that has a lot going for them in the long-term. In other words, they have, I think, something like, over 6 million room nights booked for the next few years, because it's all this group business, like, conventions, things that are planned years in advance.
So, although pretty much they're losing all of their business for the next couple of months, it's a big long-tailed business with, I don't want to say guaranteed, but, reservations on the books. They're going to be just fine when this is done. The Gaylord [...] has the famous Christmas display, that's not going to change, that's still going to bring in business.
So, when it comes to hotels, there's two big baskets I put them in, those that are going to bounce back right away from this, like, the Gaylords I think are a good example of that, that as soon as we get the all-clear, people are going to have conventions, group business. It can last for several months before anything starts to get back to normal, but at the end of the day they will.
And then you have hotels that are pretty much non-operational right now and rely on pretty much family travel, like, short notice business travel, I would say, that are going to have a tough time bouncing right back from this, especially with no future revenue already on the books. So, I would put hotels in two different categories. The casino hotels are another good example of things that kind of have a lot of long-term business on the books, because I mean no bigger convention centers of the world than in some Vegas casinos. So, they have a lot of group business, and should be fine long-term. And with all of them, it's a big question of do they have the money to make it through the tough times.
So, balance sheet analysis is so much more important than looking at the last year's earnings. It's, do they have enough liquidity, meaning, cash plus borrowing capacity to get through this. With a company like Rymen, the answer is an unequivocal, yes. They have something, like, $1 billion in liquidity. They could shut down and pay their bills for the next year-and-a-half if they had to.
With a casino company like MGM or Caesars or something like that, where they have about $10 billion in debt, the answer might not be, yes, if it lasts significantly longer than expected. So, I'd say, see who can make it through the tough times and who has business on the books already when we get to the other side?
Moser: Yeah, that's a good way of looking at it right there. I mean, it's easy to forget about the balance sheet in the good times, because they're good times. When you're growing that top-line and even if you're not profitable, there's that promise of profitability because you've got that top-line driving it. And you got ta have that liquidity, you got to have the resources to deal when the chips are down like they are now.
Well, let's talk a little bit more about that in Real Estate Investment Trust, because we saw the headline this morning that another REIT here, domestically, U.S. mall owner Taubman is telling tenants that they're going to need to pay rent during this crisis. Now, for background Taubman is a Real Estate Investment Trust, around $3 billion market cap, but also, we just saw recently where Taubman is going to be acquired by Simon Property Group, which is another company we talk about here a number of times on the show, another Real Estate Investment Trust, one that you actually like, I believe.
Frankel: Yeah, I'm a big fan of Simon.
Moser: Yes. So, let's talk about this for a few minutes because you know this runs a little bit counter to another story that came out late last week when the Cheesecake Factory essentially said, listen, we're telling our landlords we can't pay rent this month, we don't have it. And that's, of course, understandable. I mean, restaurants are one of the markets here that have taken the biggest hit from all of this, because their traffic went from fairly normal to basically nothing, save any takeout or delivery orders that they can manage to scrounge up there. And, obviously, it's become a little bit more of a competitive market with just that in mind there.
But Cheesecake Factory being a restaurant where people tend to go, that's that casual dining space, that's not your quick service space. And so, with Cheesecake Factory getting up there and saying, "Hey, we're not going to be able to pay rent, so we're not going to do it." Well, you've got, now, a landlord who's saying, "Hey, you know what, tenants are going to need to pay their rent."
And just one other point before I let you take it away here, there was one Cheesecake Factory in Taubman properties, but I believe Simon had closer to something like 30, maybe a little bit --
Frankel: Yeah, 28.
Moser: Yeah. So, there is some exposure there. So, it's interesting to see the two sides of this. You can certainly understand both sides of it, but how are we supposed to look at this here with Taubman and Simon going forward. Is it wise of them to take that firm stance as opposed to trying to be a little bit more understanding for what is kind of an unprecedented time?
Frankel: Well, we're definitely seeing a battle shaping up between landlords and tenants in the retail space right now, and both of them have points. So, let's think from the perspective of, like, Taubman and Simon first.
They still have mortgages on most of their properties, they still have to pay their loans. I mean REITs are a debt-heavy business, they take out loans to finance the properties. So, they count on rent coming in to be able to pay those loans. So, they still have to pay their mortgages, they think the tenants should still pay rent.
On the other hand -- and Cheesecake Factory, No. 1, could pay rent if they wanted to, I don't buy for a second that they can't pay their April rent, especially now that the stimulus thing is passed and there's forgivable loans for the purpose of paying rent.
Moser: So, there's an avenue you think, at least a way they could get that cash together.
Frankel: The business loans that are being given out are specifically for making payroll and paying rent obligations. So, I don't totally buy that they couldn't pay rent if they wanted to. However, they have a point, usually in your lease, whatever kind of lease you're talking about, if you're renting an apartment, if you're a business like Cheesecake Factory, there's usually some clause in your lease that says you'll have 24-hour unrestricted access to the property. Now, if you're located in a mall that's closed, you don't have access to the property. So, technically you could interpret it as the landlord is in violation of that lease. And I doubt Cheesecake Factory is going to be the only one that's going to pull a move like that.
Moser: I mean, now is the time to try to find every little letter of the law that you can to figure out what the options you have.
Frankel: I see some sort of compromise being reached. I see this as some sort of a standoff. You know, for example, maybe Simon says, "Okay, you don't have to pay your full April rent, but we expect half of it while we're closed down," or something to that extent, something both parties could financially live with, that could help both of them get through this a little better. I could see something like that happening. Now, I haven't heard of any talks going on, I've no factual basis to say that, but I could definitely see something like that happening.
Moser: Well, yeah, I mean something is better than nothing, right. It all boils down -- because if you think about, "Okay, well, the Real Estate Investment Trust, they have bills to pay, well, they're making those payments to the bank." And then you could say, "Well, the bank is going to need to forgive folks for a certain stretch of time," I mean, we're already seeing that certainly in the residential mortgage market. Big banks are jumping in to say, "Listen, we want to be a part of the solution here and it's not a matter of if we get our money, it's just going to be a matter of when, and so we extend the timeline a little bit." So, yeah, I tend to agree with you there, it seems like there's a way forward for everybody where, again, something is better than nothing.
But we go back to the liquidity conversation that we were just having there a minute ago, because I think that's a really important point I want to revisit, particularly when we consider here what Taubman is saying and therefore what Simon is saying as well. Do you view Simon as a Real Estate Investment Trust with that liquidity, is this a REIT that is going to be able to withstand any type of a stretch?
Frankel: Oh, Simon is going to be just fine. They're one of the biggest REITs in the world of any kind. At one point, before e-commerce sent retail all plunging down or whatever the past few years, Simon was actually the biggest. So, they have an A credit rating, they're one of the best credit ratings in the real estate space and they can borrow very cheaply. And we're talking, they probably have a $10 billion borrowing capacity if they wanted it. So, they're going to be just fine. They don't need their tenants -- if they missed out on a month or two of rent, they'd probably be fine.
I think it's more just the principle of it that Taubman is really talking about.
Moser: That's understandable. I mean, I do get that.
Frankel: Right. I mean, Taubman now is financially tied to Simon. So, they would be fine if they missed out on a couple of months of rent. They don't want to, for obvious reasons. And I mean, they're not just being, they have a fiduciary obligation to their shareholders to maximize revenue and to look out for their shareholders. So, like I said, I see this being a bit of a standoff for a couple of months, but I see a kind of middle ground agreement being reached between, especially mall tenants. If you're a freestanding retail business, I guess you can make the argument that you still have access to the building even though you're closed, but if you're a mall retailer, and I mean all of Simon's malls are closed right now, I'm pretty sure Taubman's the same.
Moser: Yeah, I'd have to imagine. I think I saw where maybe one of them might have been open for a stretch, but yeah, it would strike me that they all probably have to be closed at this point.
Okay. So, speaking of standoffs, let's take this conversation from Real Estate Investment Trust than to insurance companies, because we were reading an article in The Wall Street Journal this morning that is talking about the pressure that is mounting on insurance companies to actually payout for claims that are tied to these issues with coronavirus, yet these are not necessarily obligations that insurance companies are on the hook for. So, we're seeing lawmakers and regulators actually now getting out there and saying, "Listen, insurance companies, we know that maybe the coronavirus isn't necessarily something that's covered in the policy, but given what's going on today, this is ... " you know, to use an old Office favorite, I mean " ... it's essentially threat level midnight here. So, we're asking you to perhaps rewrite the language or make an exception here in trying to payout or help at least in this liquidity crunch in regard to all the losses that a lot of these businesses are taking."
I mean, there isn't really a lot of coverage it seems for something of a pandemic nature, yet here we are. And so now, it seems like we're kind of in that same position where I don't even know. I mean, I guess the insurance companies could take a really firm stance here and just say "No," but I don't know that necessarily is the wisest thing to do. We're seeing some states trying to push forward some legislation, but that legislation is getting tabled, because it is a very hot button issue. But we're seeing companies like Allstate, Berkshire Hathaway with GEICO and Progressive, we're seeing some companies step up and say, "You know what, we're going to be just like the banks here. We want to be a part of the solution.? Is that something we should worry about in regard to investing in insurance companies? Is this something that could snowball out of control, do you think?
Frankel: Well, I'm not sure, it's going to snowball out of control. We're specifically talking about a type of insurance called business interruption insurance, for the most part. Yeah, I mean there's some implications for, like, auto insurance and things like that, but for the most part this is business interruption insurance which companies buy. You know, let's say you have a restaurant, you would buy business interruption insurance to protect against having to close down. Which sounds like it would apply here, but a lot of these policies specifically have specific language to exclude virus-related closings.
Now, the intention of these aren't necessarily for a pandemic like this, it's, you know, let's say you have a restaurant and your whole crew gets the flu and you have to shut down, your insurance probably wouldn't cover that. So, there's not necessarily a gray area, the language is clear that it's not covered, but like you said, the question is, is that the right thing to do? And, there is some gray area there.
Moser: [laughs] Well, there is a lot of gray area, because, listen, having worked in the insurance business for at least a stretch, insurance is funny, it's one of those things that we need as consumers. But I'll tell you, you see very quickly when you work at an insurance company, even the reputable ones, at most they want to pay what they owe. They're not really all that keen on paying out money though.
Frankel: Right. [laughs] No, they definitely don't want to pay any more than they have to, and this could be a very slippery slope, how many businesses are closed right now. So, this could get really big, really fast, so they don't really want to pay anything more than they have to. And even if it's just one business, because then it will lead to two, which will lead to a hundred.
So, some states could force them to pay though. That's one big issue to keep an eye on. Like you said, there's a lot of legislation trying to make it through the legal system right now, state congresses and things like that, that could force businesses to pay this. So, it's a very fluid situation, I don't see it really doing much damage to the insurance sector. I hate to keep bringing up the stimulus, but there's provisions that protect businesses that have had to shut down right in the stimulus bill. So, I see that taking some of the weight off of this issue too.
Moser: Yeah. And the other thing to remember with insurance companies, these are far different than a restaurant, for example, but insurance companies, that's a pretty reliable stream of revenue. I mean, even if something is -- we hit a bump here along the way, their revenue stream might be interrupted, but generally speaking insurance is a pretty reliable revenue stream, and so they always have that to look forward to, as well.
So, yeah, it's a slippery slope for sure, it is, by the same token, nice to see a lot of those familiar names getting out there and saying, "Hey, we'd rather be part of the solution then try and cause more problems." So, again, just a testament to the time that we're living in right now.
Before we continue, as a reminder for all of you listeners out there who are likely looking for more stock ideas, because if you're listening to the show, of course, you're looking for more stock ideas. So, why not check out our Stock Advisor service? You'll get stock recommendations from David and Tom Gardner every month, you get Best Buys Now, you get a whole lot more. If you just got to IF.Fool.com and you can take advantage of a special 50% discount for listeners.
Make sure to check it out at IF.Fool.com.
Okay, Matt, let's wrap up the show this week with a little bit of a different twist here. We normally give our listeners one to watch, this week we decided to give our listeners four to watch. And these are actually four stocks we want to get on listeners' radars because we feel like these are four stocks that we think represents some potential opportunity during what is obviously a downtime in the market. Companies related to the financial space in one way, shape or form. And, Matt, I'll go ahead and let you kick it off here, but what are a couple of companies that you think investors should be keeping a close eye on?
Frankel: Well, this is tough, because I have 48 stocks on my watchlist right now.
Moser: [laughs] Okay. You got to give us two.
Frankel: [laughs] So, just to name two in the financial sector. I'd say Bank of America is my favorite in the banking space right now. They're down 37% year-to-date, and for good reason. Their interest rates have fallen, the recessions lead to lower demand, higher defaults on loans, but the bank is trading for 80% of its book value, which is pretty crazy right now.
Moser: That is, that is, wow! yeah.
Frankel: And it's a well-run bank, this is not the same Bank of America that existed before the financial crisis. They have a pretty nice loan portfolio. They've done a great job of increasing efficiency by embracing technology. I love their management team, it's one of my biggest financial holdings in my portfolio and I don't see myself getting rid of it anytime soon.
The other one is Square, which probably shouldn't surprise a lot of people. Square has lost 34% in March alone. I would say, "Wow!" but what stock hasn't lost 30% in March right now. [laughs]
Moser: [laughs] They've all lost a lot.
Frankel: And another one for good reason, Square's main business is small business. Small businesses are largely closed right now, unless they are essential, so this will hurt them in payment volume, they have their Square Capital lending platform, people might not be able to pay back the loans. But there's a lot of good things going for it. Square just got a banking charter, for example, that will also allow it to set up a low-cost deposit account platform that would help fund its loans.
The cash app is still a phenomenal piece of the puzzle. 24 million active users. The stimulus checks that are about to go out could actually be a big benefit to the cash app. I was reading that the cash app generally gets a big bump around tax refund time, for example. So, they could see kind of a double tax refund bump this year.
And the new investment platform, their CFO said that the investing users generate 2X to 3X as much revenue for cash app than non-investing customers. And with the market like it is, there's a ton of investing opportunities, so I could see that being an uptick.
And we've actually had this discussion where now that they've got the bank charter and Square Capital is a small business lending platform and small businesses are going to be in need, we could actually see Square having a big part in their recovery when this is all said and done.
Moser: I couldn't agree with you more there, I think we've been both looking at that thinking the same thing. And I mean, part of that is attributable to the network and part of that is attributable to Jack Dorsey and just his general nature. And I saw a tweet from Jack the other day.
I think there are some concerns with this stimulus as it rolls out, I mean, there's going to be a delay in getting people money and getting money from point A to point B. And while a lot of these companies like Square and PayPal do that really well, they could do it a lot more quickly. And Jack was saying something to the extent of, "Hey, listen we can get this money into people's hands more quickly, to people that need it most, let us help." And so, it'll be interesting to see if the government does look to companies like Square to help.
But two very good picks there, I like that, Bank of America and Square. I am going to run with Ameris Bancorp, which is certainly a business I know listeners are familiar with, because I've talked about it before here. You know, back in November 2010, when I first actually recommended Ameris for the Rising Stars Real-Money Portfolios that we did back in the day there, it was trading at that time around 1X book value and it had gotten a little bit below book value, this was in the middle of the Financial Crisis, it was just a little bank in Southwest Georgia, but they are very well managed and they were seen by the FDIC as a part of the solution in kind of rolling up some of those failed institutions.
Fast forward to today, I mean, this is unarguably a better and even stronger bank today. And we've essentially roundtripped back to those levels, the stock is trading at around 1X book value again. So, I think if you're looking for some small bank exposure, this really is a good one. It's well-run, it's well-capitalized, plenty of opportunity down the line as we see any kind of a recovery, no matter how long that takes really. And I think the Fidelity acquisition that they just closed on recently is going to pay off very handsomely down the line as well. So, Ameris Bancorp is one that I'm going with there.
And then another one, to me, it's kind of a no-brainer, I guess, but war-on-cash favorite MasterCard. I think anytime you see these shares in that 30X earnings range, you need to be taking a closer look. And this is a time, we will look back on this time, I think, most certainly as a catalyst for digital payments and a cashless economy. I don't know that we're ever going to fully move toward that, but I think this is only going to accelerate that concept and more people buying into the idea that you don't necessarily need cash to be able to spend money; a lot of different ways to do it now.
And then it's just a little bonus there, Matt, you know my penchant for immersive technology, and with MasterCard working on releasing their augmented reality app for their rewards program, I just thought that was really cool, I like to see that kind of forward-thinking and I can't wait to fiddle around on that just to check it out.
But those are the four for you there, Bank of America, Square, Ameris Bancorp and MasterCard. Matt, we'll keep track of these, right, I mean, we might as well?
Frankel: Absolutely. We might even have another four next week.
Moser: Yeah, maybe this is like the start of an Industry Focus basket, maybe we can look at it that way. But, hey, listen, that's going to do it for us this week, folks. Remember, you can always reach out to us on Twitter @MFIndustryFocus, you can drop us an email at [email protected].
Again, thanks for bearing with us during this difficult time, I know the show quality is a little bit hit-and-miss sometimes, but it's all going remotely and over the internet, and you know, Matt, we're doing our thing, but none of this works without Austin and we can't thank Austin Morgan enough for all of his talent here behind the glass, so to speak, the proverbial glass, even if it's not behind the glass, maybe it's behind the Zoom, maybe that's we'll just say, it's the man behind the Zoom, Austin Morgan.
So, Matt, I appreciate you taking the time out of the day to join us. Again, it was great talking to you.
Frankel: Yeah, always.
Moser: Alright. We'll see you next week.
As always, people on the program may have interest in the stocks they talk about, and The Motley Fool may have formal recommendations for or against, so don't buy or sell stocks based solely on what you hear.
Thanks again to Austin Morgan for keeping the wheels turning for us as always. For Matt Frankel, I'm Jason Moser, thanks for listening and we'll see you next week.
