2025
Derwood Chase’s Growth Momentum Stock-Picking Strategy: The Intersection of Value and Momentum
In the field of growth investing, Derwood S. Chase Jr. is undeniably a legendary and representative figure. With an investment career spanning nearly half a century, Chase held a strong academic background—graduating from the University of Virginia and earning an MBA from Harvard Business School in 1954. In 1958, he founded Chase Investment Counsel Corporation, a firm focused on managing corporate pension funds, trust funds, and individual retirement plans, deliberately avoiding any banking-related business. Under his leadership, the firm managed over $1.4 billion in assets by 2001. From 1990 to 2001, its institutional large-cap growth portfolio achieved an impressive annualized return of 16.38%, significantly outperforming the S&P 500 and the Russell 1000 Growth Index over the same period.