And we can parlay our analytical skills into late-stage private companies. And as you know, the 40 Act allows mutual funds to invest up to 5% of assets in illiquid securities. And to monitor what's happening. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. And you get 2% in the long bond, and the long bond isn't growing their "payout," and presumably, the U.S. equity companies are going to grow their dividends at a GDP-plus rate. And I think that all experienced investors have made mistakes and are more aware of when they're approaching thin ice. I mean, 100 basis points on $185 billion is $1.8 billion investment--that's hard to do quickly if you think about it. So, I remember the early days of companies like Costco, and management has experimented with new ideas, but generally speaking, they're close to their customers, they had a great value proposition. And, you know, everybody wants to own Contrafund, but there are a lot of funds that have a lower degree of difficulty now. Contrafund is so large (about. His name is Will Danoff. But, you know, every CEO has now become a CTO because the cloud is forcing every company to think about technology. Current performance may be higher or lower than what is quoted, and investors should visit Fidelity.com/performance for most recent month-end performance. And again, experience plays a role here. I feel really lucky to be here. Kalra currently manages Fidelity Blue Chip Growth Fund. Jeff Ptak is an employee of Morningstar Research Services LLC. Danoff has a degree in history from Harvard and an MBA from Wharton. And I think 150,000 people went to the conference over a week in San Francisco, and I was just blown away by the enthusiasm of the employees and the customers, and that can be priceless in terms of your appreciation of the strength of a franchise. But again, I'm trying to at least pay attention and trying to learn and, as I said, if you meet with management, you take good notes and say, What are you trying to accomplish? And then you go back after a year and say, What have you accomplished? She was previously married to Bill Danoff. Los Angeles 8635 W 3rd St Los Angeles, CA. And when you have a great team, it takes time to work with the team, make sure you're listening to your analysts and associates and other fund managers. Fidelity does have a massive staff of analysts. Consult an attorney, tax professional, or other advisor regarding your specific legal or tax situation. Start your review of Dudley S Danoff, MD. And again, I referenced low interest rates. Christine Benz: And I'm Christine Benz, director of personal finance for Morningstar, Inc. Ptak: Our guest this week is Will Danoff. Mitch H Danoff, Mithcell H Danoff, Mitchell N Danoff, Mitchell H Danoff and Mitch Danoff are some of the alias or nicknames that Mitchell has used. Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC, Member NYSE, SIPC, 900 Salem Street, Smithfield, RI 02917, (Separate multiple email addresses with commas). 10 years: Fidelity Contrafund 12.40%, S&P 500 Index 12.56%. 1 year: Fidelity Contrafund -28.26%, S&P 500 Index -18.11%. This includes companies that have shown a strong competitive position, high returns on capital, and solid free cash flow generation, as well as management teams that have been stewards of shareholder capital. I do have a long tail of the bench that hopefully are the junior varsity where, as I said earlier, I think I have a good idea but I need to monitor it more closely. I like to call companies. How has that changed in the last few decades in which you've been running money? Drew Angerer/Getty Images. And it's just a matter of finding those companies. And I think we've done very well because we're both large consumers of the Fidelity research department's ideas and efforts, but we also work closely to influence the research effort and what stocks the analysts are emphasizing. One--you have to make sure that you understand the threats to your existing holdings, but also, there's usually a pivot point where a concept then turns into a profitable business. And the name of this show is The Long View. Bio of Golfer Bettye Danoff, an LPGA Founder Bettye Danoff never won on the LPGA Tour, but she still has a very important place in tour history: She was one of the tour's 13 founding members. March 2, 2021. What are they going to be doing? Contrafund currently is heavily invested in technology. And if it is, I tend to go to a meeting or two--probably go to more meetings--because I say maybe I'll learn something by going to a meeting. Will runs a number of Fidelity equity strategies, best known of which is Fidelity Contrafund, a mutual fund he has been managing since September 1990. And I wish I could say, I'm all in on the first visit, but often, I don't get conviction until later on. From You. Ptak: If I may, I wanted to ask quickly about portfolio construction--a couple of aspects of it. Seems like, maybe that's a conscious choice you've made in how it is you're going to spend your time and focus as a portfolio manager. So, in terms of portfolio construction, in the last 30 years, I've taken bigger bets. But I would say the real key to finding when to sell is when you're looking for new ideas and when you find a better idea. Honestly, Jeff, you have to play to your strengths. Dudley S. Danoff, MD. Ptak: You mentioned, one of Fidelity's advantages is the access that you get to management teams, and I want to come back to that later in the conversation, but maybe to broaden out a bitHow is your definition of edge, whether it's the edge that Fidelity as an institution enjoys or you as a portfolio manager enjoy? Life: Fidelity Contrafund 12.19%, S&P 500 Index not applicable. (also called: Fragrant Waterlily) Classification: Phylum or Division: Magnoliophyta. What do you have on your list that would fit that bill even if it's more expensive than the average company in your group? So, it's that's sort of give-and-take. Past performance is not a guarantee of future results. Individuals should seriously consider if an investment is suitable for them by referencing their own financial position, investment objectives and risk profile before making any investment decision.). And other investors may say, I'd want to crack the whip and push management faster or harder. That tends not to be what I do. Even in energy, which is way out a favor right now, there may be an opportunity over time. I'm leveraging your industry expertise. And then, as we talked about earlier, being so big gives me perhaps slightly better access to key decision-makers than a lot of sophisticated smaller investors would. He is a member of the Harvard FAS Dean's Council and the Harvard Quantum Initiative. How did the growth initiative in China go? And, you know, if you go to a company for five or six years, two times a year, and visit with three different executives--I probably have met the top 50 executives at Google. Mr. Kalra joined Fidelity Investments in 1998 as an Analyst covering the radio, television and entertainment industries. Ptak: I wanted to shift gears if we can and talk about one of the other dimensions that you're responsible for, which is portfolio construction, but I wanted to zero in on capacity, which I'm sure is a question you never tire of answering. To further protect the integrity of our editorial content, we keep a strict separation between our sales teams and authors to remove any pressure or influence on our analyses and research. I'm investing less. If you think ABC Company is the best in your group, I'm willing to accept that. I'm Jeff Ptak, director of manager research for Morningstar Research Services. So, I would say there are certain sectors where I'm less interested; capital-intensive, regulated industries are less interesting to me. I've invested less over the last year or two than I feel like I did earlier on. But you know, you're not necessarily part of the zeitgeist. What are you doing to grow your company's earnings per share? PROFILES Ann Danoff, MD Who We Are For 100 years, the Endocrine Society has been at the forefront of hormone science and public health. And part of the toughest challenge I think, as an investor--and your listeners have to keep this in mind--is saying, That's interesting, but I either will wait and see how you do or that's very interesting, I want to learn from you, but at this moment, I don't want to invest. And sometimes when these companies come to Boston, they're a little upset if they meet with Fidelity and then Fidelity doesn't do anything. He is an actor, known for Kingsman: The Golden Circle (2017), Good Will Hunting (1997) and Alien: Covenant (2017). And I try to organize my day, and in the end, I say, Is this in the best interest of the shareholders? But we're working for the shareholders here at Fidelity, and I take that quite seriously. [1] At US $129 billion, Contrafund is the largest actively managed stock or bond mutual fund run by one person. We've detected you are on Internet Explorer. Show The Long View, Ep Will Danoff: Succeeding at Scale - Jan 29, 2020 Fidelity Contrafund's longtime star manager on why he runs money, how his definition of "edge" has evolved, the best way to engage with analysts and company management, and more. Do you attempt to improve what you're not good at? Market corrections occur, so staying the course with a skilled manager may benefit shareholders over the long term. They made some mistakes and learned from their mistakes. Permanent link He's beat large-cap growth by 400 basis points. And it was again, it was a Friday afternoon, maybe in the summer, and there weren't that many people there. Do you wait for good phase 3 data? Copyright 2023 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. In 2015, Danoff's 25-year solo management became an issue of concern as Fidelity had not named a co-manager for Contrafund. Distribution and use of this material are governed by our Subscriber Agreement and by copyright law. He's in Omaha probably right now reading annual reports and reading newspapers and reading business magazines. But Fidelity gives us this great platform because we're one of the largest institutional investors. So that idea and global markets that enable continued growth--so that's a very sweet combination for shareholders: low capital intensity, high margins, and growth. Sep.17 -- Will Danoff, who as manager of Fidelity's Contrafund has beaten the S&P 500 for three decades, makes the case for active management in the era of E. Sep.18 -- Will Danoff, Fidelity Contrafund Manager spoke Exclusively with Bloomberg's Erik Schatzker about investing in post-pandemic and how he's managed to. 5 years: Fidelity Contrafund 8.52%, S&P 500 Index 9.42%. Learn How rich is He in this year and how He spends money? I'm aware of that. Morningstar does not guarantee the accuracy, or the completeness of the data presented herein. 8/12/2019. During his ne.- Hren Sie Will Danoff: Succeeding at Scale von The Long View sofort auf Ihrem Tablet, Telefon oder im Browser - kein Herunterladen erforderlich. Sign In. Let's say, a 50-basis-point or 100-basis-point bet immediately. Mr. There are obviously trade-offs. And our real challenge or our job is to ask for a picture. Will. But how often, if ever, do you get involved with giving management your opinion about what you think they ought to do? So, in your opinion, what do you think we got wrong? Already a member? During his nearly three-decade tenure at Contrafund, Will has trounced the market indexes and, even more remarkably, managed to maintain the fund's performance at scale. But I think a lot of companies stay private longer because they were able to receive higher and higher valuations without having to go public. Technology has become a bigger and bigger part of everybody's life. You may have a gain or loss when you sell your shares. Please see additional standard performance information. I've never heard of this company, and it looked like they were growing. And another 45-minute presentation had to be done. Danoff: That's a really good question, Christine. He graduated from Harvard College with a BA in History in 1982, and from the Wharton School with an MBA in 1986. During his nearly three-decade tenure at Contrafund, Will has trounced the market indexes and, even more remarkably, managed to maintain the fund's performance at scale. But when it comes to some of the tech and the biotech, I'm treading more lightly. Born on May 7, 1946 in United States of America, Bill Danoff started his career as Singer . I don't whip the fund around. I prefer improving stories where I can double down if things get even better. How have your priorities changed? 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