Charles Brandes

Early life and education Brandes grew up in Pittsburgh. In 1965, he graduated from Bucknell University with a bachelor's degree in economics. He did graduate studies at San Diego State University.

Brandes is a CFA charterholder. Brandes met Ben Graham in San Diego while he was training to be a stockbroker. He was able to learn firsthand the techniques Graham used to determine undervalued investment securities. Also recently, the firm made investments in the troubled mortgage and financial sectors, paying bargain prices for investments in Countrywide Financial, Washington Mutual, Wachovia. and Bank of America. Brandes is among the largest institutional shareholder of Royal Bank of Scotland and General Motors. Thomson Financial's well-regarded Nelson's World's Best Money Managers rankings consistently lists Brandes Investment Partners among the Top 10 International Equity Fund Managers in the world.

Brandes' adherence to Graham and Dodd principles has extended to investment research. He commissioned a study to investigate the "Falling Knives" strategy, the investment axiom that catching falling knives (a stock whose price has been dropping precipitously) is like catching falling money (likely to lead to losses). Researching 1,000 companies between 1986 and 2002 whose price had fallen 60% over a twelve-month period, the study found that within three years of the decline 13% of the companies went bankrupt, but despite this that the portfolio as a whole gained in value by 18% over three years. Announced departure from the firm effect February 26, 2018. Brandes published a well-received book on his investment strategies in 2003 titled Value Investing Today.

Philanthropy The Tanya and Charles Brandes Foundation funded a scholarship program at San Diego Jewish Academy's Maimonides Upper School.

Personal life Brandes has been married four times: In 1986, he married his second wife Linda King Formo (born 1948). They divorced in 2004. They did not have children. He lives in San Diego County in Rancho Santa Fe on 30 Acres. in 2020 he was married in a private ceremony over Zoom, the couple celebrated September 9, 2021 in a public ceremony with friends and family.