Third Avenue
Third avenue Small Cap Value Fund
US Small-cap Value
Dec 2024 → Sep 2026
Our archive holds 6 letters from this strategy, behind 16 investment theses and positions in 41 companies. Every quote below is copied verbatim from the letter it came from.
6 letters in 3 years · follow all of Third Avenue for every strategy.
Performance
as of Sep 30, 2026 · net of fees · USD · Institutional
- YTD+17.7%index +11.0%
- 1Y+23.1%
- 3Y · /yr+15.0%
- 5Y · /yr+11.9%
- 10Y · /yr+10.0%
- Inception · /yr+9.1%
Index: MSCI USA Small Cap Value Index
| YTD | 1Y | 3Yper year | 5Yper year | 10Yper year | Since inceptionper year | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Third avenue Small Cap Value Fund | +17.7% | +23.1% | +15.0% | +11.9% | +10.0% | +9.1% |
| MSCI USA Small Cap Value Index | +11.0% | — | — | — | — | — |
Disclaimer
These figures are copied from the manager’s latest letter, as of Sep 30, 2026. They were extracted automatically, have not been verified by HF Best Ideas and may contain errors. They cover a single share class, in the currency and fee basis stated above; other share classes and your own returns will differ. This is not investment advice, nor an offer to buy or sell any fund. Past performance does not predict future returns.
Read full disclosures →What it bought and sold
Finally, the fund also exited its position in BlueLinx Holdings.
- New positionVersigent PLCSep 2026
During the quarter, the Fund initiated positions in two new holdings, Champion Homes and Versigent PLC.
The Fund also exited its holding of UniFirst Corporation with the company’s takeover by Cintas Corporation still pending completion.
Versigent PLC (“Versigent”) is a recently formed company, new to public markets, following its March 2026 spin-off from Aptiv PLC, a global parts, services and technology supplier to automotive manufacturers.
During the quarter, the Fund initiated positions in two new holdings, Champion Homes and Versigent PLC.
During the quarter, the Fund initiated positions in three new holdings, Maximus Incorporated, Taylor Morrison Home Corporation, and CRA International.
During the quarter, the Fund initiated positions in three new holdings, Maximus Incorporated, Taylor Morrison Home Corporation, and CRA International.
The Fund exited two positions during the quarter as the takeovers of Tri Pointe Homes and ProAssurance Corporation were completed, which is typically our preferred method of exit.
During the quarter, the Fund initiated positions in three new holdings, Maximus Incorporated, Taylor Morrison Home Corporation, and CRA International.
During the quarter, the Fund initiated positions in three new holdings, Maximus Incorporated, Taylor Morrison Home Corporation, and CRA International.
The Fund exited two positions during the quarter as the takeovers of Tri Pointe Homes and ProAssurance Corporation were completed, which is typically our preferred method of exit.
During the quarter, the Fund initiated positions in three new holdings, Maximus Incorporated, Taylor Morrison Home Corporation, and CRA International.
The Fund exited its position in Cantaloupe Inc, which is in the process of being acquired in a transaction expected to close imminently.
During the quarter, the Fund initiated positions in five new holdings, Qualys, Inc., Compass, Inc., Harley-Davidson, Inc., Catalyst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Robert Half Inc.
After an extremely long and contentious courting period, long- time Fund holding Unifirst finally agreed to be acquired by much larger competitor, Cintas.
During the quarter, the Fund initiated positions in five new holdings, Qualys, Inc., Compass, Inc., Harley-Davidson, Inc., Catalyst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Robert Half Inc.
During the quarter, the Fund initiated positions in five new holdings, Qualys, Inc., Compass, Inc., Harley-Davidson, Inc., Catalyst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Robert Half Inc.
During the quarter, the Fund initiated positions in five new holdings, Qualys, Inc., Compass, Inc., Harley-Davidson, Inc., Catalyst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Robert Half Inc.
During 2025, Liberation Day tariff fears led to an investment in auto supply company Visteon and additions to an existing investment in agricultural equipment maker Alamo Group.
our third energy-related holding Tidewater was only an indirect beneficiary of disruption and higher energy prices during the quarter.
The Fund initiated investments in BlueLinx and Boise Cascade in response.
During the quarter, the Fund initiated positions in five new holdings, Qualys, Inc., Compass, Inc., Harley-Davidson, Inc., Catalyst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Robert Half Inc.
Fears of regulatory changes that may result from the 2025 New York City mayoral election led to acute pessimism for banks with loan books exposed to rent-regulated properties, creating the opportunity to initiate a position in Flagstar and for existing holding OceanFirst to grow materially through the acquisition of Flushing Financial.
The Fund initiated investments in BlueLinx and Boise Cascade in response.
Also held
- Robert Half
- Collegium Pharmaceutical
- Kaiser Aluminum
- Tidewater
- Qualys
- MYR Group
- ICF International
- Octave Specialty Group
- PBF Energy
- Flagstar Bank
- LSB Industries
- Taylor Morrison Homes
- Supernus Pharmaceuticals
- Catalyst Pharmaceuticals
- SandRidge Energy
- UMB Financial
- Prosperity Bancshares
- Boise Cascade
- Encore Capital Group
- BlueLinx Holdings
Its investment theses
- PBF Energy Inc.Sep 2026PBF Energy benefits from normalized refinery economics, huge cash flows, a deleveraged balance sheet, and a low free-cash-flow multiple.
- Champion Homes, Inc.Sep 2026Champion Homes is a well-capitalized leading manufactured-home producer with scale, regulatory tailwinds, and operating leverage upside.
- Versigent PLCSep 2026Versigent is a focused auto electrical-architecture spin-off with top-tier market position, aligned management, and secular demand growth.
- MaximusJun 2026Maximus is a government contractor and technology-forward consultant seen as attractively valued, with AI-enabled efficiency gains, resilient contracts, and potential M&A optionality.
- Taylor Morrison Home CorporationJun 2026Taylor Morrison Home Corporation is a well-regarded homebuilder with strong assets, buybacks, profitability, and asset-light compounding potential.
- CRA InternationalJun 2026CRA International is a leading consulting firm with strong moat-like credibility, shareholder-aligned management, buybacks, and leverage to M&A activity.
- Boise CascadeJun 2026Boise Cascade is a deeply depressed building products distribution company with attractive network assets and consolidation optionality.
- BlueLinx HoldingsJun 2026BlueLinx Holdings is a deeply depressed building products distribution company with attractive network assets and consolidation optionality.
- Harley-Davidson, Inc.Mar 2026Harley-Davidson is a low-expectations turnaround with valuable financial services, net cash, and potential operating improvement under new management.
- Catalyst Pharmaceuticals, Inc.Mar 2026Catalyst is a profitable orphan-drug platform with strong cash generation, patent protection, and mid-teens growth potential from Firdapse.