François Rochon & Giverny Capital: Q3 2026 13F Portfolio Analysis

During Q3 2026 (reporting period ended September 30, 2026), François Rochon’s Giverny Capital acted as a net seller—reducing reported US long equity assets from $2.97 billion to $2.92 billion—while aggressively building positions in The New York Times Company (NYT) and MSA Safety Incorporated (MSA) and completely liquidating lululemon athletica inc. (LULU). Analyzing this portfolio realignment offers critical insight for long-term value investors studying Rochon's selective capital reallocation, demonstrating how high-conviction additions in specialized mid-cap compounders are systematically funded by trimming established mega-cap core holdings.

1. The investor: philosophy, fund and lifetime work#

Giverny Capital, founded and managed by François Rochon, operates under a classic, disciplined value-oriented investment style focused on the long-term ownership of extraordinary businesses. Rochon’s overarching objective is multi-year capital compounding, achieved through strict adherence to low portfolio turnover, rigorous fundamental business evaluation, and exceptional patience across volatile market cycles. Rather than attempting macro economic forecasting or tactical market timing, Rochon evaluates companies as an owner, focusing on long-run intrinsic value growth and competitive moat durability.

This commitment to underlying business performance explains Giverny Capital’s willingness to hold core compounders like Meta Platforms (META) and Alphabet (GOOG) through multi-year market cycles and noise. Rochon views short-term quote fluctuations as secondary to the compounding capacity of a firm's operational cash flows. In accordance with DeepValues Research methodology, all analytical evaluations within this report stick strictly to documented regulatory filings and quantitative worksheets without external fund comparisons.

2. The portfolio at quarter end: size, concentration, core holdings#

According to Giverny Capital’s SEC Form 13F-HR filed on November 12, 2026 (for the quarter ended September 30, 2026), the firm’s reported US long equity portfolio totaled $2.92 billion distributed across 51 positions (compared to $2.97 billion across 51 positions at the end of Q2 2026).

The portfolio maintains high concentration, with the top 10 positions representing 53.6% of total reported US long equity assets.

Top Core Holdings as of September 30, 2026#

Additional significant equity positions outside the top 10 include Alphabet Inc. Class A (GOOGL: $105.3M / 3.6% share / -1% change), ResMed Inc. (RMD: $81.8M / 2.8% share / -5% change), Booking Holdings Inc. (BKNG: $80.3M / 2.8% share / -6% change), Kinsale Capital Group, Inc. (KNSL: $76.6M / 2.6% share / -1% change), and NVR, Inc. (NVR: $76.5M / 2.6% share / -6% change).

3. What changed: new, added, trimmed and sold-out positions, biggest first, with motives clearly labelled as inference#

During Q3 2026, Giverny Capital initiated 3 new positions, added to 8 existing holdings, trimmed 37 positions, and completely sold out of 3 stocks. Capital deployment was asymmetric: the firm bought approximately $102.6 million in equities while selling $183.4 million, operating as a net seller of ~$80.9 million. Overall portfolio turnover remained low at ~3.5%.

Primary portfolio adjustments, ordered by total estimated absolute dollar move, were as follows:

• Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (BRK.B) [Trimmed]: Reduced share count by 39% (approx. $47.9M sold); ending position value of $75.8M (2.6% of portfolio). [Inferred Motive: Capital re-allocation toward higher-conviction equity opportunities or portfolio rebalancing].
• The New York Times Company (NYT) [Added]: Expanded share count by 102% (approx. $31.5M bought); ending position value of $62.3M (2.1% of portfolio). [Inferred Motive: Accumulation of a digital subscription platform operating near intrinsic value].
• MSA Safety Incorporated (MSA) [Added]: Expanded share count by 96% (approx. $28.4M bought); ending position value of $58.0M (2.0% of portfolio). [Inferred Motive: High-conviction build out of a specialized industrial safety manufacturer despite premium valuation metrics].
• Markel Group Inc. (MKL) [Trimmed]: Reduced share count by 36% (approx. $18.9M sold); ending position value of $34.0M (1.2% of portfolio). [Inferred Motive: Portfolio rebalancing or reallocation of insurance-exposed equity capital].
• Veeva Systems Inc. (VEEV) [Added]: Expanded share count by 62% (approx. $16.9M bought); ending position value of $44.0M (1.5% of portfolio). [Inferred Motive: Expanding position in a specialized healthcare software compounder showing high growth conviction].
• lululemon athletica inc. (LULU) [Sold Out]: Liquidated 100% of the position (valued at approx. $14.7M in Q2 2026). [Inferred Motive: Decision to exit following growth algorithm deceleration or structural brand risks].
• Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) [New Position]: Initiated a new position worth $12.4M (0.4% of portfolio). [Inferred Motive: Opportunistic initiation in a large-cap compounder offering diversified cloud/retail cash flows].
• Meta Platforms, Inc. (META) [Trimmed]: Trimmed share count by 4% (approx. $8.8M sold); ending position value of $210.8M (7.2% of portfolio). [Inferred Motive: Incremental profit harvesting or portfolio weight management following strong multi-quarter price appreciation].
• Builders FirstSource, Inc. (BLDR) [Sold Out]: Liquidated 100% of the position (valued at approx. $8.2M in Q2 2026). [Inferred Motive: Capital reallocation away from cyclical residential construction exposure].
• Other Key Trims (Largest to Smallest Dollar Moves): Alphabet Inc. (GOOG, -$7.0M / -3%), Visa Inc. (V, -$6.6M / -5%), Progressive Corp. (PGR, -$6.4M / -6%), Automatic Data Processing (ADP, -$6.2M / -4%), AMETEK, Inc. (AME, -$6.1M / -4%), and Medpace Holdings (MEDP, -$5.7M / -4%).

4. The biggest moves, valued: owner earnings, DCF range, reverse DCF, and margin of safety#

DeepValues' quantitative valuation framework applies an owner-earnings Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model and reverse DCF based on ten years of SEC XBRL data to evaluate Giverny Capital's three major transaction subjects.

4.1 The New York Times Company (NYT) — Strong Buying Near Intrinsic Value#

• Market Price & Calculated Value: Share Price: $71.81 | Calculated Base Intrinsic Value: $73.72
• Verification Status: Double Verified (SEC XBRL filings matched against DeepValues database).
• Starting TTM Owner Earnings: $0.5 Billion (Operating cash flow $0.6B minus maintenance capex minus stock compensation $0.1B).
• DCF Intrinsic Value Range (10.0% Discount Rate):
  • Conservative Case (4.9% g): $58.18 per share (Price is 23.4% above value)
  • Base Case (9.8% g): $73.72 per share (Margin of Safety: 2.6%)
  • Optimistic Case (13.8% g): $89.58 per share (Margin of Safety: 19.8%)
• Reverse DCF Analysis: At $71.81, the market implies owner earnings growth of 9.3% annually for 5 years (fading to 2.5%), closely aligning with its 10-year historical owner earnings growth rate of 9.8%.
• Investor Assessment: François Rochon added aggressively (+102%) at a market price virtually identical to its base intrinsic value estimate ($71.81 vs. $73.72), acquiring shares with a modest 2.6% margin of safety.

4.2 MSA Safety Incorporated (MSA) — Buying Significantly Above Base Intrinsic Value Estimate#

• Market Price & Calculated Value: Share Price: $174.67 | Calculated Base Intrinsic Value: $102.77
• Verification Status: Double Verified.
• Starting TTM Owner Earnings & Balance Sheet: $0.3 Billion. Net Debt balance stands at -$0.9 Billion, derived from $0.2 Billion in cash and marketable securities minus $1.1 Billion in total debt as of September 30, 2026.
• DCF Intrinsic Value Range (10.0% Discount Rate):
  • Conservative Case (2.9% g): $84.09 per share (Price is 107.7% above value)
  • Base Case (5.8% g): $102.77 per share (Margin of Safety: -70.0%; price is 70.0% above base value)
  • Optimistic Case (9.8% g): $133.82 per share (Price is 30.5% above value)
• Reverse DCF Analysis: At $174.67, the market implies owner earnings growth of 14.0% annually for 5 years, far exceeding its 10-year historical owner earnings growth rate of 5.8%.
• Investor Assessment: Rochon expanded this position by 96% despite the stock trading at a 70.0% premium to standard base intrinsic value models, indicating Rochon expects business cash flow growth to significantly outpace historical averages.

4.3 lululemon athletica inc. (LULU) — Liquidating Position Below Calculated Intrinsic Value#

• Market Price & Calculated Value: Share Price: $104.48 | Calculated Base Intrinsic Value: $322.61
• Verification Status: Single-Source Estimate (Starting owner earnings lack second-source verification).
• Starting TTM Owner Earnings & Capex Nuances: Operating cash flow of $2.0B minus maintenance capex minus stock compensation ($0.1B) yields $1.4 Billion in TTM owner earnings. In the TTM period, $0.1B of capex was above depreciation and treated as growth investment. The conservative DCF model ($210.72 per share) treats half of capex above depreciation as upkeep in case part of growth investment merely maintains market position.
• DCF Intrinsic Value Range (10.0% Discount Rate):
  • Conservative Case (7.5% g): $210.72 per share (Margin of Safety: 50.4%)
  • Base Case (15.0% g): $322.61 per share (Margin of Safety: 67.6%)
  • Optimistic Case (19.0% g): $397.02 per share (Margin of Safety: 73.7%)
• Reverse DCF Analysis: At $104.48, the market implies an annual owner earnings contraction of -6.4% for 5 years, contrasting sharply with its 10-year historical owner earnings growth rate of 15.0%.
• Investor Assessment: Giverny Capital completely exited LULU at $104.48 despite a theoretical 67.6% margin of safety relative to trailing metrics. As highlighted in DeepValues' research timeline tracking the shattered growth algorithm and structural decay, when a growth engine experiences fundamental deceleration, trailing cash flows become uninformative. Rochon prioritized qualitative business risk over static backward-looking DCF models.

5. Track record: the ten-year 13F clone against the S&P 500 and how this investor behaves through cycles#

To evaluate historical execution, DeepValues constructed a 13F clone tracking model. Standard 13F cloning purchases reported US common stock positions weighted by value at the close of the first trading day following the SEC filing date, holding until the subsequent report. Dividend-adjusted returns are measured against the SPY total return benchmark over a 10.0-year window (2016-11-14 to 2026-11-12, covering 40 filings).

13F Clone vs. SPY Performance Summary#

Annual Breakdown (13F Clone Return / SPY Return)#

• 2016*: +4.2% / +3.8%
• 2017: +22.1% / +21.7%
• 2018: -3.8% / -4.6%
• 2019: +31.2% / +31.2%
• 2020: +14.8% / +18.3%
• 2021: +27.1% / +28.7%
• 2022: -18.9% / -18.2%
• 2023: +24.8% / +26.2%
• 2024: +15.4% / +24.9%
• 2025: +9.1% / +17.7%
• 2026*: +8.0% / +11.9%

*Partial years.

Implementation Characteristics and Clone Caveats#

Over the 10-year tracking period, the clone model held an average of 48 stocks with high concentration in top holdings (top 10 averaged 62.8% of portfolio value) and an average quarterly turnover of ~7.9%. Price coverage averaged 95.7% of reported value.

Crucial Caveat: A 13F clone is not Giverny Capital’s actual fund performance. Form 13F filings exclude cash reserves, short positions, non-US listings, fixed income, options/derivatives, and intra-quarter trades. Furthermore, disclosures reflect holdings up to 45 days post quarter-end.

6. What a patient investor can learn#

1. Prunings vs. Conviction: Incremental trimming across mega-cap leaders (META, GOOG, V) provided liquidity to fund concentrated additions in specific mid-cap compounders (NYT, MSA).
2. Qualitative Moat Protection Over Backward-Looking DCF Math: Selling out of LULU at a 67.6% margin of safety illustrates that disciplined value investors prioritize qualitative moat health and ongoing business trajectory over historic DCF calculations when fundamental growth algorithms decay.
3. Disciplined Turnover: Maintaining a ~3.5% quarterly turnover rate highlights disciplined, low-activity portfolio management across volatile market environments.

7. Key numbers: a short bulleted list of the most important figures#

• Reported US Long Equity Value: $2.92 Billion (Q3 2026) across 51 positions.
• Top 10 Portfolio Concentration: 53.6% of total equity assets.
• Quarterly Net Capital Activity: Net seller of ~$80.9 Million ($102.6M bought / $183.4M sold); turnover ~3.5%.
• Largest Purchase Expansions: NYT (+$31.5M / +102% shares), MSA (+$28.4M / +96% shares), VEEV (+$16.9M / +62% shares).
• Largest Trim/Exit Sales: BRK.B (-$47.9M / -39% shares), MKL (-$18.9M / -36% shares), LULU (-$14.7M / 100% exit).
• New Position Initiated: AMZN ($12.4M / 0.4% portfolio share).
• 10-Year 13F Clone CAGR: 12.4% vs. SPY 15.1% (-2.7 percentage points/year lag).

Closing Note: The Limitations of 13F Filings & Disclaimer#

Form 13F filings reflect public US-listed long equity holdings as of September 30, 2026, filed up to 45 days late (November 12, 2026). They exclude cash reserves, fixed income, short positions, non-US listings, and any trades executed post quarter-end.

This article is created strictly for educational and research purposes by DeepValues Research and does not constitute investment advice.