🗣️ Investor Talk #47: Alberto Echevarría

Alberto consistently beats the market — learn his data-driven secrets in this exclusive interview.

Jun 30, 2025

Welcome to Investor Talk — 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 — such as “What is your investment strategy?”, “What are your highest conviction stocks?”, and “If you could give one piece of advice to investors, what would it be?”

👉 Check out all previous Investor Talks here
Including interviews with Brian Feroldi (Founder - Long Term Mindset), Shay Baloor (Host of Stocktwits) and Gav Blaxberg (CEO - WOLF Financial).

In this edition, we have the pleasure of interviewing:

Name: Alberto Echevarría @MonkEchevarria
Age: 42
Residence/Country: Spain
Invests since: 1999

Introduction
Picture a 16-year-old kid staring at his computer screen in disbelief. In just a few days, his first investment ever, in Terra, the hottest Spanish-speaking IPO ever, had tripled. That kid was me, 26 years ago. And although my dad had been teaching me about markets, nothing prepared me for that rush.

Here's what nobody tells you about early success: it's the most dangerous teacher you'll ever have. For years, I chased that Terra high with gut feelings and hot tips. Sometimes I won big. More often, I learned expensive lessons about luck versus skill. The turning point came when I realized I was gambling with my future. That's when I discovered that legendary investors like Benjamin Graham and Peter Lynch didn't rely on luck - they had systematic, research-backed approaches that turned investing from guesswork into science.

After decades, I learned the most important lesson: the best investors aren't the ones who get lucky once - they're the ones who stack the odds in their favor, every single time.

What is your investment strategy?
Picture two fishermen heading out for the day. The first fisherman follows the crowd to wherever boats are gathering that morning, chasing rumors and trusting his gut.

The second discovered something remarkable while studying decades of fishing records: certain waters consistently produced three times more fish than others. So he ignores the crowd and sails directly to the proven spots where fish actually concentrate. Guess who returns with the better catch?

While 99% of investors chase hot tips and follow the crowd, I simply fish where decades of academic research shows winning stocks actually concentrate: companies with good growth, reasonable value, strong profitability, solid financial health, and shareholder-friendly management.

This approach has proven three times more accurate at beating the market. That's why I compiled these insights into MonkStreet- a system built on 300+ peer-reviewed studies that identifies these "smart waters" with mathematical precision.

I'm not right every time - no one is. But over the long run, fishing in better waters makes all the difference. Same ocean. Same fish. Three times better results.

The choice seems obvious: Why fish randomly when you could fish where science proves the fish actually are?

How many stocks are currently held in your portfolio?
I typically hold 20-25 positions to achieve optimal diversification while maintaining meaningful concentration in my highest-conviction ideas. I stop buying more of any stock once it reaches 5% of my portfolio, but I let my winners run - they can grow well beyond that if they perform.

Which sectors do you mainly focus on?
I'm completely sector-agnostic. The MonkStreet methodology works across all industries because it focuses on fundamental business quality rather than sector trends. Great companies exist everywhere - from boring industrials to exciting tech stocks. I let the data guide me to quality, regardless of the industry label.

What are your 3 highest conviction stocks?
I can't name just three! But if I had to choose:

$UNH - UnitedHealth Group, an incredible company that Mr. Market has unfairly punished recently despite rock-solid fundamentals
$NVDA - NVIDIA, which many love to hate, but I still see a brilliant future ahead under exceptional leadership.
$META - Meta, the company literally no one can go a day without using - whether through Instagram, WhatsApp, or their other platforms - with tremendous optionality ahead.

What is the stock in your portfolio with the highest return?
$NVDA - Definitely NVIDIA. I bought it early because their score looked exceptional and it had incredible optionality across AI, autonomous driving, and crypto. I figured only one of those had to work for it to be the investment of a lifetime. Well... let's just say it worked out better than expected!

What is the biggest investing mistake you have made?
It's always been the same two mistakes: selling winners too early and waiting for "better prices" that never come. My biggest regrets aren't about losses - they're about missed opportunities from overthinking great companies when the data was already screaming "buy".

If you could give one piece of advice to investors, what would it be?
Stop trying to time the market and start timing your behavior. The biggest enemy of long-term returns isn't market volatility - it's emotional decision-making. Develop a systematic approach, stick to it through all market conditions, and remember that successful investing is more about psychology than intelligence. Most people have the tools to succeed; they just lack the discipline to use them consistently.

My Favorites
Favorite book: "What Works on Wall Street" by James P. O'Shaughnessy - it's the perfect blend of rigorous research and practical application

Favorite podcast: "Founders" - I love learning from the stories and strategies of history's greatest entrepreneurs

Favorite quote: "Winners keep winning" - from David Gardner @DavidGFool

Favorite FinX account: Jim O'Shaughnessy @jposhaughnessy - The man who taught me that systematic, data-driven investing beats gut feelings every time

Where can we find more info about you?
Website: monk.st
Newsletter: newsletter.monk.st (1,000+ subscribers)
X: @TheInvestingMonk (13,000+ followers)

That’s a wrap!
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🗣️ Investor Talk #47: Alberto Echevarría

Alberto consistently beats the market — learn his data-driven secrets in this exclusive interview.

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