Mark Minervini's track record

**Mark Minervini's track record** is one of the strongest and most verified in the trading world, especially among individual stock traders.

### Major Verified Achievements

- **1997 U.S. Investing Championship**: Won with a **+155%** return (real money, verified). He was reportedly only ~50% invested on average.

- **2021 U.S. Investing Championship**: Won the $1M+ stock division with a record **+334.8%** return (again real money, verified). This stood as the record until 2024.

He has only entered the competition twice and won both times.

### Longer-Term Performance

- **1994–2000 (5-year period)**: Averaged **+220% per year** with no losing years (this period included his 1997 win and was audited/verified, which led to his feature in Jack Schwager’s *Stock Market Wizards*).

- He has publicly stated very strong long-term compounded returns (tens of thousands of percent over decades), with only rare down periods.

- Known for **low risk** relative to returns: Strict risk management (small losses), often going to cash or reducing exposure in tough markets. Jack Schwager noted he had only one slightly down quarter in a multi-year audited stretch.

### Context and Notes

- Minervini trades a **momentum/SEPA (Specific Entry Point Analysis)** style focused on high-relative-strength growth stocks with strong technical setups (VCP — Volatility Contraction Patterns, etc.).

- His performance is notable because it spans different market regimes (late 90s bull market and 2021 post-COVID environment).

- Some skepticism exists in trading forums about how replicable his extreme championship years are for average traders (due to high concentration and skill required), but his competition wins are independently verified by the U.S. Investing Championship.

He is widely regarded as one of the top momentum traders of the past 30+ years, alongside names like David Ryan. His books (*Trade Like a Stock Market Wizard* and *Think & Trade Like a Champion*) detail his methodology.