Welcome to Investor Talk โ where we interview successful investors to uncover their journeys, strategies, and the lessons they've learned. Get inspired by real stories and gain valuable insights to sharpen your own investment approach.
Every interview follows the same set of sharp, insightful questions โ such as โWhat is your investment strategy?โ, โWhat are your highest conviction stocks?โ, and โWhatโs the biggest investment mistake youโve made?โ
In this edition, we have the pleasure of interviewing:
Name: Sam Hollanders
Age: 44
Residence/Country: Belgium
Invests since: 1999 - yes indeed, I began right in the middle of the dotcom bubble, though that wasnโt a defining moment for me. From the start, I was guided toward value investing. Later, I explored other approachesโtechnical analysis, trend following, day trading, options tradingโbut eventually returned to value investing in 2004. So, I often consider 2004 as my true start as an investor.
๐๐ป๐๐ฟ๐ผ๐ฑ๐๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป
I started investing thanks to a professor who compared a bankrupt Belgian video rental chain, SuperClubโwhich failed due to fraudโwith the fast-growing and reputable Belgian supermarket chain, Colruyt. Seeing how the balance sheet and annual accounts could reveal these differences made everything click for me.
At that time, I was working in my parentsโ photo and multimedia stores, which my sister and I later took over. But a fire had been ignited; I became obsessed with the stock market, which at that time I believed to be easy money. This led me to explore day trading, trend following, optionย strategies and so on.
I canโt remember exactly when I started reading about Warren Buffett. In my twenties, "getting rich slowly" didnโt seem appealing, but reading about value investing, Buffett, Graham, and Fisher kept drawing me in. The real transformation happened when I read The Little Book That Beats the Market by Joel Greenblatt. His focus on price in relation to quality made everything click. From that point, I felt free to blend strategies, moving between the approaches of Buffett, Graham, Walter Schloss, Philip Fisher, Charlie Munger, and Greenblatt with his special situations in You Can Be a Stock Market Genius.ย
My father often urged me to manage more money on behalf of the family. In 2007, he entrusted me with some of his bank funds, and I sold them all by mid-2007. By mid-2008, I was panicking because I hadnโt found anything worth buying and was considering returning the money. A few months later, in October 2008, I was fully invested. Watching the portfolio drop further over the next five months scared me as it wasn't my money, but by the end of 2009, I had made more money in the stock market than I had working in our stores.
๐ช๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ถ๐ ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ ๐ถ๐ป๐๐ฒ๐๐๐บ๐ฒ๐ป๐ ๐๐๐ฟ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ๐ด๐?
When I say "value investing," I truly mean value investing. I like quality and growth, but I donโt like paying a premium for it. I see many people misquoting Buffett and Munger, twisting their words to fit their own narrative. But Buffett never overpaid; when he talks about a "fair price for a wonderful company," he still means a low price. Even for companies like Apple $AAPL, Seeโs Candy, and Coca-Cola $KO, he never paid a steep price.
Iโm also very cautious about overestimating growth and making long-term predictions. In our familyโs photo and telecom stores, I saw firsthand how quickly things can changeโand how easily people miscalculate. For example, the digital camera seemed like a goldmine for photo printing. People were no longer limited to 36 photos on vacation; they could take hundreds. The assumption was that theyโd want to print all of these, but instead, people stopped printing altogether. With images viewable on cameras and computers, physical prints were no longer needed.
In telecom, we saw the same rapid shifts: Nokia rose, then Samsung and BlackBerry followed. In the end, only Samsung survived against the iPhone; the rest became obsolete. These experiences taught me that even experts canโt reliably predict five years into the futureโlet alone 10 or 20 years.
This is why I push back against the idea that you can pay a premium for quality and expect returns to align with ROIC in the long run. While thatโs mathematically true, predicting ROIC 10 or 20 years out is unrealistic. Looking back at companies that achieved this now is pure survivorship bias. Even Amazon $AMZN didnโt know it would grow into the company it is today. So, I donโt look for the next Amazon. I prefer reliable, "boring"businesses that offer enough margin of safety and are more predictable.
๐๐ผ๐ ๐บ๐ฎ๐ป๐ ๐๐๐ผ๐ฐ๐ธ๐ ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐๐ฟ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ป๐๐น๐ ๐ต๐ฒ๐น๐ฑ ๐ถ๐ป ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ ๐ฝ๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐ณ๐ผ๐น๐ถ๐ผ?
I aim to hold between 20 and 25 stocks, never going below 15. If I need more diversification, Iโll buy holding companies, but I wonโt exceed 30, as thatโs my limit for effective management.
๐ช๐ต๐ถ๐ฐ๐ต ๐๐ฒ๐ฐ๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐ ๐ฑ๐ผ ๐๐ผ๐ ๐บ๐ฎ๐ถ๐ป๐น๐ ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฐ๐๐ ๐ผ๐ป?
I donโt focus on specific sectors, but I do exclude some, like banks and biotech. That said, my portfolio often leans toward industrials, food, and retail.
๐ช๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ ๐ต๐ถ๐ด๐ต๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ป๐๐ถ๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐๐๐ผ๐ฐ๐ธ๐?
Right now, I like:
$STLA - Stellantis
$XFAB - X-Fab
$BONAVB - Bonava
Cyclical plays that have been beaten down, where I think the market is overreacting.
๐ช๐ต๐ถ๐ฐ๐ต ๐๐๐ผ๐ฐ๐ธ ๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ต๐ถ๐ด๐ต๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐๐ฟ๐ป?
One example is Ackermans & Van Haaren $ACKB, which I bought at the end of 2008 for โฌ32; itโs now at โฌ188. Another would have been Picanol Group, but it merged with Tessenderlo Group $TESB. I kept the Tessenderlo shares from that merger and expect them to surpass Ackermans in the long run.
๐ช๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ถ๐ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฏ๐ถ๐ด๐ด๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ถ๐ป๐๐ฒ๐๐๐บ๐ฒ๐ป๐ ๐บ๐ถ๐๐๐ฎ๐ธ๐ฒ ๐๐ผ๐ ๐ต๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐บ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ฒ?
I sold Lotus Bakeries $LOTB at โฌ1,000โa double for me at the time. It now trades at โฌ11,920, but I doubt I would have held it this long; to me, it is overpriced.
Another big mistake was Noble Corporation $NE, an offshore oil driller. I bought it during a severe downturn in the sector. At the time, Noble was best-in-class and prepared to weather the storm. However, when competitors went bankrupt and re-emerged from Chapter 11, Noble was left carrying the most debt, unable to compete with these leaner rivals. I held onto it too long and should have seen that shift soonerโan important lesson learned.
๐ ๐ ๐ณ๐ฎ๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐ถ๐๐ฒ๐
Favorite book: Poor Charlie's Almanack is the book I revisit most often. The most influential, however, was The Little Book That Beats the Market by Joel Greenblatt. Theย simplicity in which he explains investing makes it, in my view, one of the best investment books ever.
Favorite podcast: There are so many to choose from, but Iโd pick Richer, Wiser, Happier by William Green @WilliamGreen72. I could listen to him for hours, and heโs just as engaging in real life. His book is also one of the best Iโve read.
Favorite quote: "Choosing individual stocks without any idea of what you're looking for is like running through a dynamite factory with a burning match. You may live, but you're still an idiot." - Joel Greenblatt
Favorite FinX account: Again, there are so many to choose fromโit almost feels like betrayal to pick just one. But Iโll go with someone who deserves more recognition: @DavidDiranko. I met David at ValueX Klosters last year and was very impressed with his presentation.
๐ช๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ป ๐๐ฒ ๐ณ๐ถ๐ป๐ฑ ๐บ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ถ๐ป๐ณ๐ผ ๐ฎ๐ฏ๐ผ๐๐ ๐๐ผ๐?
At valuingdutchman.com, I write about the stock market, share random thoughts, and host a paid investment newsletter. Our fundโs website is chesscapital.lu. For Dutch readers, I also wrote a book titled "Verdubbel je geld in vijf jaar" (Double Your Money in Five Years), reflecting on my investing journey and lessons learned from 2004 to 2019. And ofcourse my X account:ย
Disclaimer:
The information and opinions provided in this article are for informational and educational purposes only and should not be considered as investment advice or a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any financial product, security, or asset. The Future Investors does not provide personalized investment advice and is not a licensed financial advisor. Always do your own research before making any investment decisions and consult with a qualified financial professional before making any investment decisions. Please consult the general disclaimer for more details.