The Secular Trend Toward Fitness and Longevity – And A Great Stock To Play It
My personal investment style is to look for long term secular trends that put the wind in the sails of an industry and then find the best companies in those sectors to invest in. The pet industry is one of my favorites and I’ve written about my positions in Chewy (CHWY) and Freshpet (FRPT). Another secular trend is the aging of the Baby Boomers, the first of whom turn 80 in 2026. The Baby Boomers own most of the wealth in the country and they are living a long time. Therefore, I have invested in the senior living REITs Welltower (WELL) and Ventas (VTR). My blog “Three Stocks For The Era of Casino Capitalism” is another example.
Another clear secular trend is the growing interest the wealthy have in fitness and longevity. Andrew Huberman, Peter Attia, Oura Rings, etc… The elites are using their money to buy fitness, health and longevity – which makes total sense from a quality of life perspective. One public company that is capitalizing on this trend is Lifetime Fitness (LTH).
Lifetime operated 189 high end athletic clubs across the country as of December 31, 2025. Comparable Center Revenue increased 11.1% in 2025, 12.2% in 2024, 15.3% in 2023 and 33.0% in 2022. That is superb growth. As growth has slowed, Adjusted EBITDA Margin has increased each of the last 4 years to 27.5% in 2025. I’m a fan of CEO Bahram Akradi who embodies the values of his company and the stock can currently be had for 17x 2026 EPS Guidance. LTH is also doing some unique things to add even more value like integrating luxury apartments into their centers (see “When the Gym Becomes Home” [SUBSCRIPTION REQUIRED], WSJ M1, Friday April 17).
