Buying more as prices fall is textbook value investing
Since 1993, Tweedy Browne has quietly practiced the art of patient capital — buying what others abandon and holding what others forget. By the close of 2023, that discipline had grown the firm's 13F portfolio to $2.05 billion, a $180 million expansion achieved not through proliferation but through concentration, trimming the roster from 47 to 45 holdings while doubling down on beaten-down names like FMC Corporation. In a market era often seduced by momentum, this quarterly filing is a small but legible reminder that conviction and restraint can still compound.
- FMC Corporation, a struggling agricultural chemicals company, became the quarter's boldest bet — Tweedy Browne doubled its stake as the stock fell toward $50, a deliberate embrace of market pessimism.
- Berkshire Hathaway, held since before the 2008 crisis and bought heavily at $65–$90 per share, now anchors 21% of the portfolio at roughly $407 — a position being gently harvested after decades of appreciation.
- Alphabet, once aggressively cut by a third in early 2023, remains the second-largest holding at 17%, with the fund making only minor trims — suggesting ambivalence rather than exit.
- Johnson & Johnson, a crisis-era purchase built to over 4.3 million shares, has been steadily unwound to just 1.14 million — a long, disciplined realization of gains accumulated over fifteen years.
- The fund's international sleeve, holding Nestlé, TotalEnergies, and Roche, remains invisible in the 13F but anchors a strategy that has outpaced the MSCI EAFE by 165 basis points since inception.
Tweedy Browne ended 2023 with a portfolio valued at $2.05 billion, up roughly $180 million from the prior quarter. The firm, which has practiced disciplined value investing since 1993, simultaneously grew its asset base and tightened its focus — reducing holdings from 47 stocks to 45. The five largest positions alone account for nearly two-thirds of all capital, a concentration that speaks to deep conviction in a small number of ideas.
The quarter's most decisive move was a doubling of the FMC Corporation position, now representing over 9% of the fund. Tweedy Browne has been accumulating the agricultural chemicals company since 2021, but accelerated sharply as shares fell into the $50–$67 range in late 2023. The stock trades near $51 today — a price the fund appears to regard as an opportunity rather than a warning. A similar logic drove a 45% increase in U-Haul, a newer position that has already appreciated from the $45–$59 purchase range to around $65.
Meanwhile, the fund continued its long, methodical exit from Johnson & Johnson, a holding built during the financial crisis to over 4.3 million shares and now reduced to 1.14 million. At $158 per share, those sales represent the quiet realization of fifteen years of compounding. Alphabet, the second-largest position at 17%, saw only minor trimming after a dramatic one-third reduction earlier in 2023. Berkshire Hathaway, the portfolio's cornerstone at 21%, was also modestly reduced — a measured harvesting of gains from shares purchased between $65 and $90 that now trade near $407.
Smaller positions across AutoZone, American Express, Bank of America, and others were trimmed in what reads as routine maintenance rather than strategic retreat. The firm's international fund, which holds significant stakes in Nestlé, TotalEnergies, and Roche, does not appear in the 13F but remains central to the overall strategy. Since inception, the approach has delivered annualized returns of 8.39% — outpacing its benchmark by 165 basis points and offering quiet evidence that patience, practiced consistently, remains a viable edge.
Tweedy Browne's investment portfolio swelled to $2.05 billion by the end of 2023, a jump of roughly $180 million from the prior quarter. The fund, which has built its reputation on disciplined value investing since 1993, pared back its roster of holdings from 47 stocks to 45, suggesting a tightening of focus even as the overall asset base grew.
Berkshire Hathaway remains the anchor of the portfolio, commanding about one-fifth of all capital. This is a position with deep roots—Tweedy Browne has held it since before the 2008 financial crisis, though the bulk of the current stake was accumulated in 2010 and 2012 when shares traded between $65 and $90. The stock now sits around $407. Over the past year, the fund has done modest trimming, harvesting gains from a position that has appreciated substantially. The five largest holdings—Berkshire, Alphabet, FMC Corporation, Johnson & Johnson, and Ionis Pharmaceuticals—together account for roughly two-thirds of the portfolio, a concentration that reflects conviction in a small number of ideas.
The quarter's most aggressive move was a doubling down on FMC Corporation, a chemical and agricultural company that now represents 9.12% of the fund. Tweedy Browne has been building this position since 2021, but the buying accelerated sharply in the last two quarters as the stock price fell. In the final three months of 2023, shares traded between $50 and $67, and the fund doubled its stake at those depressed levels. The stock currently trades near $51. This pattern—buying more as prices fall—is textbook value investing, betting that the market has overshot on the downside. Similarly, the fund increased its U-Haul holding by 45% this quarter, adding to a position established just months earlier. U-Haul shares have climbed from the $45-$59 range where Tweedy Browne first bought to around $65 today.
Elsewhere, the fund trimmed its second-largest position, Alphabet, which now represents 17% of the portfolio. After a sharp one-third reduction in early 2023 at prices between $83 and $110, the fund has been making minor adjustments. Johnson & Johnson, a long-term holding that dates back to the financial crisis, has been gradually harvested. The fund built the position to over 4.3 million shares between 2009 and 2012, but has been selling steadily since then. The current stake stands at 1.14 million shares, and at the current price of $158, Tweedy Browne is realizing substantial long-term capital gains. Ionis Pharmaceuticals, a newer addition purchased in early 2022, has become a top-five position at 8.53% of the portfolio despite minor selling over the past year.
The fund also trimmed a long list of smaller positions—AutoZone, American Express, Bank of America, Cisco, FedEx, Wells Fargo, and others—each representing less than 2.2% of the portfolio. These adjustments suggest ongoing portfolio maintenance rather than a major strategic shift. Notably, the fund's flagship international value fund maintains an 85% allocation to non-U.S. stocks, with significant holdings in companies like Nestlé, TotalEnergies, and Roche that do not appear in the 13F filing. Since its inception in 1993, the fund has delivered annualized returns of 8.39%, outpacing the MSCI EAFE benchmark by 165 basis points—a testament to the durability of the value approach even through periods of growth-stock dominance.
Citações Notáveis
The bulk of the current Berkshire stake was purchased in 2010 and 2012 at prices between $65 and $90— Tweedy Browne's 13F filing
A Conversa do Hearth Outra perspectiva sobre a história
Why would a fund double down on FMC when the stock is falling? Isn't that just catching a falling knife?
Not if you believe the market has mispriced it. Tweedy Browne buys when prices fall because they're looking for a margin of safety—they want to own something worth more than they're paying. If FMC is fundamentally sound but temporarily out of favor, lower prices are an opportunity, not a warning.
But they've been holding Berkshire Hathaway since before the financial crisis. How do you stay committed to something for that long?
Because the thesis hasn't changed. Berkshire is a fortress balance sheet with a brilliant manager. They bought most of it in 2010 when it was cheap, and now they're trimming slowly as it's appreciated. That's not abandonment—that's discipline. You take profits when you have them.
The portfolio is concentrated—five stocks are two-thirds of the money. Isn't that risky?
It is, but only if those five ideas are wrong. Tweedy Browne has done the work. They know what they own. Concentration is the price of conviction. A diversified portfolio of mediocre ideas is riskier than a focused portfolio of great ones.
They're selling Johnson & Johnson after holding it for over a decade. What changed?
Nothing changed about the company. What changed is the price. They bought it at $48 to $72 in 2009-2012. Now it's at $158. They're harvesting gains they've earned. That's not a loss of faith—that's taking the money off the table.
The international fund holds companies like Nestlé and Roche that don't show up in the 13F. Why the split?
The 13F only captures U.S.-listed securities. Their international fund is doing the same value work overseas, where they've found better opportunities. They've beaten the MSCI EAFE by over a percentage point a year for 30 years. That's not luck.