Burry’s indirect AI bet is ERO, saying that data-center construction will intensify copper demand while new mines take 18 years to reach production.

  • Burry owns QXO common and preferred shares, betting Brad Jacobs can scale the building-products roll-up and drive a re-rating despite housing, rates and diesel pressures.
  • He called Temple & Webster a “fairly large position” after an 82% annual decline and also added to Sprouts, down 43% over the past year.
  • Burry called Zoetis “extremely out of favor” after a 50% slide, saying it currently has “no COVID bump, no AI attachment, no mojo.”

“The Big Short” investor Michael Burry is staying away from the crowded AI trade and searching for value elsewhere, building positions in copper miner Ero, Brad Jacobs-led QXO and three deeply discounted consumer and animal-health stocks.

“The house party is packed, pushing AI higher today, but I am largely ignoring the ‘woo-hoos,’” “The Big Short” investor said in a Substack post.

Burry named five companies: Ero Copper (ERO), QXO (QXO), Temple & Webster, Sprouts Farmers Market (SFM) and Zoetis (ZTS). He owns both QXO common shares and its mandatory convertible preferred stock.

Burry Bets On Copper Behind The AI Boom

Burry’s indirect AI bet is Ero, a Brazil-focused copper and gold producer. “All those back at the house are going to be needing a lot of copper,” he said.

COMEX copper settled Monday at $6.6865 per pound, about 2% below its Sept. 9 record. The metal has gained 19% this year and 46% over the past 12 months amid mine disruptions, low Chinese inventories and restocking ahead of China’s National Day. Its year-to-date gain has outpaced the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY), Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) and SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (DIA), which have returned about 13%, 18% and 9%, respectively.

Burry acknowledged that part of the current rally reflects a temporary supply lull. His longer-term thesis is based on the sharp mismatch between copper demand and the time required to develop new mines. Citing Apollo Chief Economist Torsten Slok, Burry noted that major copper discoveries with deposits containing at least 500,000 tonnes have fallen from double-digit annual totals in the 1990s and 2000s to one or two in recent years, with none in 2025.

New deposits take 18 years to reach production, while copper demand from AI data centers can emerge within two to three years. S&P Global expects overall copper consumption to increase from 28 million tonnes in 2025 to 42 million tonnes by 2040.

Why Burry Is Buying Ero Copper 

Burry sees Ero as a higher-cost copper producer whose margins could expand sharply if prices remain elevated. “Ero common does it for me,” he said, calling it a mid-sized position.

Ero maintained its 2026 production guidance of 67,500 to 77,500 tonnes, with C1 cash costs of $2.15 to $2.35 per pound. Burry also praised the management team installed in early 2025 for delivering on “three rather difficult promises,” adding that a forensic review of the company’s accounting “came up clean.”

Although ERO shares have more than doubled over the past year, Burry believes the company remains substantially discounted to larger copper miners. On Stocktwits, retail sentiment toward ERO has ranged from ‘neutral’ to ‘bearish’ over the past week, even as message volume doubled and the ticker’s watcher base grew 5% over the past month, signaling rising retail interest. 

Burry Backs Brad Jacobs’ QXO Roll-Up 

Burry also owns QXO common shares and its 5.5% Series B mandatory convertible preferred stock. “The stock is way down, and I see an opportunity to jump on board,” he said.

Led by Brad Jacobs, who founded United Rentals and XPO, QXO is pursuing a roll-up of the fragmented building-products distribution market. Burry believes greater scale and solid execution could drive a re-rating, though the stock remains caught up in “housing and rates noise, not to mention diesel noise.” 

Burry favors QXO’s preferred shares, which he said offered a 7.4% cumulative current yield. Unless converted earlier, the securities will automatically convert into common stock for settlement on or about May 15, 2028. “The common is about as attractive as the preferred, but I like the dividend as some downside protection,” he said. 

On Stocktwits, retail sentiment toward QXO improved to ‘extremely bullish’ from ‘bullish’ a week earlier, as monthly message volume surged 467% and the ticker’s watcher base grew 4%. 

Burry Adds 3 Out-Of-Favor Stocks

Burry bought more Temple & Webster, the Australian online furniture retailer that trades over the counter as TPLWF, calling it “a fairly large position.” The stock has fallen about 82% over the past year amid housing and consumer-spending concerns. Fiscal 2026 revenue increased 11% to A$665 million, while net income dropped 62% to A$4.3 million. Burry said he plans to publish his full investment thesis soon.

The investor rounded out his purchases with “a little more” Sprouts Farmers Market and Zoetis. Sprouts shares have declined about 43% over the past year, while Zoetis has shed half its value amid softer companion-animal demand and reduced guidance. Burry said Zoetis has “always caught my admiration” but is now “extremely out of favor,” lacking a COVID boost, an AI connection or any market “mojo” at the moment. 

On Stocktwits, retail sentiment toward Zoetis remained ‘bearish’ over the past week as message volume fell 75%, though the ticker’s watcher base grew 9% over the past month. Meanwhile, sentiment toward Sprouts improved to ‘neutral’ from ‘bearish’ a day earlier but remained below the ‘bullish’ level recorded a week ago, while message volume declined 67% and its watcher base was nearly flat, rising just 0.1% over the month. 

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