Looking to invest outside of the United States?

  • (1:00) – Is the global reopening benefiting Greek tourism?

  • (7:30) – Digital nomads and the impact of the retirement visa on the housing market

  • (14:20) – The brain drain in Greece: is the trend reversing?

  • (26:05) – Impact of austerity measures in Greece on the economy

  • (34:45) – Advice for investors heading into retirement

  • 41:00) – Episode summary: GOOGL, MSFT, AMZN, ABNB, EXPE, BKNG

  • Podcast@Zacks,.com

Welcome to episode 345 of the Zacks Market Edge podcast.

Each week, Zacks host and equity strategist Tracey Ryniec will be joined by guests to discuss the hottest investing topics in stocks, bonds and ETFs and how they impact your life.

This week, Tracey is joined by Zacks Product Manager Harry Kougais, who was also a guest on her very first show over 7 years ago.

Is it time to invest in Greece (again)?

Episode #1 of the Zacks Market Edge podcast, released on October 13, 2015, was called “Is it time to invest in Greece?”. Some of you may recall that Greece went through a tough series of austerity measures after the Great Recession and was still recovering in 2015. Also, as tourism hit all-time highs, the problem of over-tourism was real.

Tourist hotspot Santorini decided to limit the number of cruise ships allowed in the port as some of its towns were overwhelmed with day tourists.

But the pandemic has put tourism on hold across Greece, and around the world, for more than 2 years.

What will it look like in the future?

Microsoft and Alphabet make investments

In 2015, Tracey and Harry spoke about the “brain drain” of Greek millennials to other employment hubs like Berlin and London because that’s where the jobs and opportunities were.

But while there’s still some of that in 2023, the Greek government is pushing for more digital jobs. In 2023, global companies will come to Greece.

In 2020, MSFTMicrosoft announced its intention to open a data center in Greece, and in November 2022, Google Alphabet announced that it was also investing in the country with the possibility of hiring up to 20,000 people by the end of the decade.

Microsoft has over 200,000 employees worldwide while Alphabet has around 187,000.

Tourism remains the main industry

But tourism remains the main industry, both in mainland Greece and in the islands.

1. Airbnb ABNB

Airbnb is now a big company globally, especially in Greece. Harry explained how some investors buy entire buildings in and around Athens to put on Airbnb.

Airbnb shares have fallen over the past year, however. They fell 33.6% during this period, but rebounded last month, adding 22.1%.

Airbnb still isn’t cheap on a forward P/E basis. It is trading at 37.6x.

Should you invest in Airbnb for international growth?

2. Expedia Group, Inc. EXPE

Expedia has been around for decades, but now that the global travel industry has reopened, the online travel company is back in the spotlight.

Shares of Expedia have also fallen significantly over the past year, falling 33.7%. And they too have rallied in the past month, with airlines reporting strong bookings in the summer months, indicating that people are still eager to travel. The shares rose 33% during this period.

But Expedia IS actually cheap on a forward P/E basis, with a P/E of just 12.6.

Should Expedia be on your shortlist as a way to invest in global growth?

3. Reservation Holdings Inc. BKNG

Booking Holdings is one of the largest online travel agencies in the world. You can book Greek hotels here.

Over the past year, Booking’s shares have actually grown, but only 2.4%. Over the past month, like Expedia and Airbnb, shares of Booking have soared 22%.

Booking is more expensive than Expedia, on a P/E basis, with a forward P/E of 20.

Is Booking preparing to burst in 2023 as global travel picks up steam?

What else do you need to know to benefit from Greek growth?

Listen to this week’s podcast to find out.

[In full disclosure, Tracey owns shares of MSFT, GOOGL and BKNG in her personal portfolio and EXPE in Zacks Value Investor portfolio.]

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