Francis Chou

Francis Chou’s latest 13F shows a portfolio that is almost entirely absent of the mega-cap technology names that dominate most large value funds. Instead, Chou’s positioning remains anchored in a narrow set of financial and industrial equities, with his top holdings concentrated in companies he has held for years. His conviction is not spread across dozens of positions; it is built on a handful of businesses where he sees a margin of safety that the broader market has overlooked. The most telling recent move is Chou’s continued accumulation of a major U.S. bank, a position that now accounts for a disproportionate share of his disclosed assets. While many peers have trimmed financials in favor of energy or healthcare, Chou has added to this stake, suggesting he believes the market’s pessimism on net interest margins and credit costs is overdone. His second-largest holding, a regional insurer, reinforces this theme: Chou is betting on underwriting discipline and capital return rather than growth. What separates Chou from his peers is his willingness to hold cash-like positions and avoid the chase for yield or momentum. He has made no new forays into artificial intelligence or semiconductor names, and his portfolio shows no defensive rotation into utilities or consumer staples. Instead, he has kept his book concentrated and his turnover low, a style that has lagged in recent quarters but that he has not abandoned. The latest filing shows a modest reduction in one industrial holding, but the proceeds appear to have gone back into his top financial names rather than into new ideas. Chou’s portfolio is a statement of patience: he is not reacting to the current market narrative, and his 13F offers no sign that he intends to start.