About GDS Investments | 401K and Wealth Management in West Chester, PA

Value Investing

"I am a believer that informed value investing—buying assets at a fraction of fair value—is the most sensible path to wealth creation. Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger are my mentors in terms of investing, what companies to look for, and the virtues of patience."

-Glenn D. Surowiec

Glenn D. Surowiec

Registered Investment Advisor

Bio

Glenn founded GDS Investments in 2012. From 2001 to 2012, he worked for Alsin Capital Management, Inc. as an equity research analyst (2001-2003), co-portfolio manager (2003-2008), and portfolio manager (2008-2012). Before joining ACM, Glenn worked for Enron Corp. as a derivatives structuring manager, and for Commerce Bancorp (now TD Bank) as a real estate credit analyst.

He currently serves as an advisory board member of Value Conferences, an online-only conference featuring some of the most prestigious value investors across the globe.

Glenn has a B.A. in management (accounting concentration) from Gettysburg College and an MBA (finance concentration) from Southern Methodist University. He graduated in the top 10% of his MBA class and participated in study-abroad programs both as an undergraduate (Seville, Spain) and graduate student (Melbourne, Australia). Glenn is a proud husband to Alicia, father to three college-aged boys, and his interests include running, golfing, and hot yoga.

Honestly, 95% of the information and advice out there is bad. It won't help you reach your goals. My job is to find the 5% – the relevant, the accurate, the uncommon – and put it to work for you.

Philosophy

PHILOSOPHY

At GDS, we specialize in moving 401K assets from former employers to IRA accounts, to provide our clients with options. We invest on behalf of individuals and institutions who desire more control over their money's future. Client portfolios are managed using Value Investing principles, with a particular emphasis on buying securities at a discount to fair value, and investing with a long-term horizon.

We invest in securities that have the following attributes:

Business Strength

We seek out industry leaders with enduring competitive advantages within their supply chain (price setters vs. price takers). In addition, we emphasize companies with above average returns on equity and capital, and those who are consistent producers of free cash flow throughout the economic cycle.

Management Quality

We invest in ethical companies with high-integrity management teams. We look for companies that demonstrate a deep understanding of the capital allocation process and that aim to create value for shareholders beyond conventional methods.

Valuation

The easiest way to generate excess returns (above market returns) is to pay less for a security than its conservative valuation. Much of our time is spent figuring out what securities are worth and waiting until it is priced substantially below this level. Patience is the cornerstone of successful investing.

Catalysts

At GDS, our preference is to own securities (debt and equity) in companies that are undergoing change. Academic studies show that the market is delayed in accounting for material changes in company strategy, business composition and capital structure. Therefore, consistent with our goal of finding misunderstood and mispriced securities, we routinely analyze and evaluate spin-offs, mergers, restructurings, rights offerings, asset sales, recapitalizations and other special events.

On Glenn's Desk

Client Update, March 2026: Pulling back the curtain

“He who conquers others is strong; he who conquers himself is mighty.” Lao Tzu Value investing is sometimes misunderstood as a philosophy of buying a stock and never selling it. It’s understandable why people might think this. Legendary value investor Warren Buffett once said, “Our favorite holding period is forever.” And it’s true: in an ideal world, we would find exceptional businesses at attractive prices and hold them indefinitely. But the reality is that circumsta

Client Update, February 2026: Let's slow it down.

“The big money is not in the buying and selling, but in the waiting.” Charlie Munger, Value Investor and former Vice Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway What a year it has already been. Between nonstop headlines, political controversies, and market volatility, it feels like we’ve already packed a year's worth of developments into little more than a month. In times like this, our first instinct is not to react, but to slow things down. Volatility does not invalidate a discipl

Client Update, January 2026: The New Year and the Economic Landscape

“What you see and what you hear depends a great deal on where you are standing. It also depends on what sort of person you are.” C. S. Lewis Happy New Year, and thank you, as always, for your continued trust and partnership. As we begin 2026, it feels appropriate to step back and assess the economic landscape, what the market is grappling with, and how we are positioning capital in an environment that remains unusually volatile and uncertain. What should investors expect fr

Client Update, November 2025: A Glance in the Rearview Mirror

“The two most powerful warriors are patience and time.” Leo Tolstoy As we move deeper into the fall and approach year-end, it may be worth pausing for a moment to look back. Politically and economically, this has been a year full of upheaval and surprises. Can a glance in the rearview mirror offer us clues about what lies ahead? One thing strikes us immediately. Back in May, we speculated that Trump’s unpredictable tariffs-based economic policy risked upending preexisting

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