Arnold Van Den Berg

Born 1939 in the Netherlands during World War II. As an infant, his Jewish parents placed him with a non-Jewish Dutch family to survive the Holocaust — both his parents perished in concentration camps. Emigrated to the United States as a child and grew up in modest circumstances in Los Angeles. Had no formal college education — largely self-taught in investing through voracious reading. Studied the works of Benjamin Graham, Warren Buffett, Philip Fisher, and other investment masters. Founded Century Management in 1974 in Houston, Texas, as a registered investment advisor managing money for high-net-worth individuals and families. Built the firm to approximately $1-2B in AUM through consistent performance and word-of-mouth referrals. Semi-retired in the 2010s, handing day-to-day management to his partner Scott Faris, though remained involved in an advisory capacity. Known for his deeply philosophical approach to investing, his personal resilience, and his emphasis on combining psychological self-mastery with investment discipline. One of the most underappreciated value investors of his generation.

Strong long-term track record over 40+ years, though precise publicly available return figures are limited because Century Management is a private advisory firm, not a mutual fund. Based on available interviews and industry recognition, Century Management delivered annualized returns in the low-to-mid teens over multiple decades, meaningfully outperforming the S&P 500 over the full period. Van Den Berg's approach performed particularly well during and after market downturns (2001-2003, 2008-2009) because his large cash holdings allowed him to buy aggressively during panics. His worst relative periods were during extended bull markets when his cash drag hurt performance. He was featured in the Manual of Ideas, invited to speak at various value investing conferences, and recognized by peers as one of the most thoughtful and disciplined value investors. The lack of a public mutual fund track record makes precise verification difficult, but the consistency of his approach and the longevity of Century Management (50+ years) speak to genuine skill.

Specific position disclosures are limited due to Century Management's private nature. Based on interviews and presentations, Van Den Berg has favored companies with strong balance sheets in sectors experiencing temporary problems: financials during credit crises, energy during oil price collapses, consumer staples during market dislocations. He has mentioned investments in insurance companies, commodity-related businesses (when commodities were depressed), and asset-heavy companies trading below tangible book value. His approach to holding large cash positions means the specific equity positions he does hold are high-conviction ideas.

High relevance. Van Den Berg's philosophy aligns closely with ours on multiple dimensions: (1) Focus on margin of safety and downside protection ('little chance of losing money'). (2) Willingness to hold cash when no bargains are available — genuine discipline rather than fully-invested bias. (3) Moderately concentrated portfolios in best ideas. (4) Long-term holding periods. (5) Emphasis on independent thinking and doing your own work. (6) Balance sheet focus and asset analysis. (7) Psychological discipline as a competitive advantage. His approach to intrinsic value — focusing on what an acquirer would pay, tangible assets, and free cash flow — mirrors our floor price methodology. The main limitation is that we cannot track his portfolio in real time, so the value is philosophical/educational rather than position-following. His self-taught background and emphasis on reading and self-improvement are inspirational.