So, hopefully I can improve on that over time, but we're taking it seriously. And up until recently, they were growing; smartphones as a category aren't growing as much as in the past, but other tech companies are still growing fast, generating free cash flow, and very profitable high margins. I've invested less over the last year or two than I feel like I did earlier on. The Fidelity Contrafund is a large-cap growth fund with $139 billion in . But in every industry, there are new emerging themes, and hopefully, the Fidelity research department and I can identify those themes and find companies that are going to benefit from those themes. And again, I referenced low interest rates. This year, he marks three decades of managing the $131 billion Wed like to share more about how we work and what drives our day-to-day business. He has been married to Joan Grbach since 1988. Insights from Fidelity's portfolio managers. 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 would say, often because Joel and I and all the other fund managers started as Fidelity research analysts, when a new analyst arrives, they usually show up at my office with a list, and say I'm the new railroad analyst. I mean Fidelity is an unbelievable organization. Past performance is not a guarantee of future results. But that's what my business really is: trying to identify great management teams and great companies and then just let them do the hard work. I mean, I was the retail analyst at Fidelity in the mid 80s. There are large-cap companies that are in a growth mindset that, even though they're large, can continue to generate a lot of shareholder value. Dr. Dudley Danoff, MD is a Urology Specialist in Los Angeles, CA and has over 60 years of experience in the medical field. [2] Early life and education [ edit] He subsequently . I just feel more comfortable with the idea of touching and feeling, interviewing management, trying ideally to go to as many company presentations or user conferences. Our investment management business generates asset-based fees, which are calculated as a percentage of assets under management. But when it comes to some of the tech and the biotech, I'm treading more lightly. And our real challenge or our job is to ask for a picture. You think about your own life: If you're strong in one area, you don't necessarily want to change, and managements sometimes have difficulty changing because they've been so successful. So, in terms of portfolio construction, in the last 30 years, I've taken bigger bets. So, what percentage of your time do you spend on researching them? So I ran into at about 12:35, and there was an empty seat, and I sat down. Life: Fidelity Contrafund 12.19%, S&P 500 Index not applicable. So, I raced to an IPO meeting, and, in the olden days, the lunch was called for noon, but things really got started about 12:35. And then they want to talk to the largest shareholders, the potential largest shareholders. And I think that all experienced investors have made mistakes and are more aware of when they're approaching thin ice. This fund combines Will's focus on growth and investing in "best-of-breed" firms with Joel's focus on value, spec . We'll widen the aperture, so to speak, and talk about sort of the general theme of focus. You're well known in investing circles. I do feel, honestly, Christine and Jeff, that a large fund can only do so well and that smaller funds may do better than I do. William Danoff, the portfolio manager of Fidelity's Contrafund ( FCNTX ), was initially rejected by Fidelity before coming aboard as an analyst in 1986. Bill Danoff was born on May 7, 1946 in Springfield, Massachusetts, USA. Danoff: Well, Jeff, just to make sure that we're level set, I do believe that there is a Fidelity commercial about a letter that I received in 1993 from a new Contrafund investor. I mean, it's great, and clearly, culture starts at the top, but when you have access to people who are making the decisions, who are actually out in the field seeing the competitive response or knowing the challenges of delighting the customer, that can really, really help, and I think larger funds like Contrafund have that advantage to do more in-depth research. Beating the market isn't easy. This copy is for your personal, non-commercial use only. So, seven or eight years ago, there were a lot of very good opportunities. Danoff: That's a great question, Christine. So, I think partly every investor has to play to their strengths, and Fidelity and other big institutional investors have a huge opportunity because these management teams are willing to talk to us and visit us. Insights from Fidelity's portfolio managers Learn How rich is He in this year and how He spends money? And the executive said, You know, we're not really competing with the airlines. So, I'd say it's a very healthy give-and-take and dialogue. [1] He is known for " Afternoon Delight ", which he wrote and performed as a member of the Starland Vocal Band, and for writing multiple hits for John Denver, including "Take Me Home, Country Roads". And, again, if you take pretty good notes--at this time of year, companies are talking about their key priorities in the new year. Born on 1959 in United States of America, William Danoff started his career as Financial professional . I've never heard of this company, and it looked like they were growing. And another 45-minute presentation had to be done. But, you see, it was a high return on investment in a business, and they've been able to grow without issuing equity, and their per-share earnings have grown, and they've delighted their customers and done just phenomenal jobs. I would say I probably see two or three private companies a week. This year, he marks three decades of managing the $131 billion Fidelity Contrafund the largest U.S. mutual fund run by a single. So says Will Danoff, manager of Fidelity Investments' $108 billion Contrafund, the biggest actively managed stock or bond mutual fund run by one person. We're thrilled to have him as our guest. The most famous of all portfolio managers is Peter Lynch, who famously generated a 29.2% annual return for 13 years while managing the Magellan Fund. What are you doing to defend your competitive position? And then also, What are you doing, about certain mega trends that we all are living with, the emergence of the Internet, more competition from low-cost countries and other big trends that we see over and over?. Benchmark returns include reinvestment of capital gains and dividends, if any, but do not reflect any fees or expenses. Find Dr. Danoff's phone number, address, hospital affiliations and more. She was previously married to Bill Danoff. There could be big economic opportunity if these biotech companies can solve some of these disease opportunities. Important legal information about the email you will be sending. [1] At US $129 billion, Contrafund is the largest actively managed stock or bond mutual fund run by one person.[2]. Born on May 7, 1946 in United States of America, Bill Danoff started his career as Singer . The first is, I was just curious how you think about the path to outperformance, whether you're conscious of the need to produce a few, call them supercompounders. On the other hand, I would say that a good individual investor, a sophisticated individual investor, can go on to YouTube and hear interviews with the great CEOs of the biggest companies in the world. We want to look before we leap. So, you know, I do have a lot in technology. The Fidelity Contrafund is an actively managed domestic equity fund that seeks long-term growth of capital and can be an appropriate core equity holding for investors seeking broad exposure to companies we think have "best-of-breed" qualities and are underappreciated by other investors. And do you expect that to ramp up further in the future? Technology has become a bigger and bigger part of everybody's life. Ptak: Bye. Investment return and principal value will fluctuate, so investors may have a gain or loss when shares are sold. And I'd say try and stay optimistic. Copyright 2023 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. And if I like the management team, and I'm confident that they're going to be able to grow, and I like what they're doing. And that's where the privates are. Danoff first took up songwriting while he was a student at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. Often, that executive will figure out what they want to do for six months. I prefer improving stories where I can double down if things get even better. 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. His name is Will Danoff. To order presentation-ready copies for distribution to your colleagues, clients or customers visit http://www.djreprints.com. 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. But, you know, what we've all learned is we want to make sure that the management team is particularly special. And sometimes it's just a matter of, Hey, you know, you haven't been to Boston in a couple of years. Let's call the company together, or let's go visit the company together. Because, if you, Jeff, and I were working together, and I was just out at a conference and came back and said, Oh, my gosh, ABC Company sounded awesome. I want to make sure the research department knows I care about the stock. 8/12/2019. And as investors, we all need to play to our strengths and be who we are. Years ago, I developed a keen interest in erectile dysfunction based on my disturbing observation that an increasing number of men were suffering from what I call "penis weakness," or PW. Age, Biography and Wiki. Taffy Nivert. And then I went to Dreamforce, which is Salesforce.com's user conference out in San Francisco. When he was just 15 years old, he created his first original song and produced it on his own. Under his direction, the fund has averaged a whopping 14.13% return (about 2% greater than the benchmark S&P 500 index). Bill Danoff In 1976, using Fat City as the core, Bill added Jon Carroll and Margot Chapman to form the Starland Vocal Band, which quickly gained national fame with the monster hit, "Afternoon Delight". And we have unwavering standards for how we keep that integrity intact, from our research and data to our policies on content and your personal data. But at the time, people weren't paying attention to airlines and Europe was sort of a no growth, low growth space. Danoff manages Fidelity's Contrafund and has for over thirty years. Eclipsing the market over decades is astonishing. At US$129 billion, Contrafund is the largest actively managed stock or bond mutual fund run by one person. 5847 Education: BA Hunter College, City University of New York, 1976. 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. [1] At US $129 billion, Contrafund is the largest actively managed stock or bond mutual fund run by one person. But capacity--you know, I'm my degree of difficulty is harder than a smaller fund. 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. How did the initiative in India go? And I'm aware of the risks of that profile, but at the moment, I think that's the best-selling taste. Will Danoff, Fidelity Contrafund Manager spoke Exclusively with Bloomberg's Erik Schatzker about investing in post-pandemic and how he's managed to beat the S&P 500 by an average of more than 3 . All investments are subject to investment risk, including possible loss of principal. The long view has to be that equities are going to perform better than bonds for the foreseeable future. Adam Danoff Wiki: Salary, Married, Wedding, Spouse, Family Adam Danoff is an actor and producer, known for Bloodlust Zombies (2011), Punch-Out!! 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. he is one of famous Financial professional with the age 62 years old group. Ptak: And so does that tend to be a function of kind of how you would assess opportunity costs associated with entering into a new idea? The other thing to be considered in the comparison between the American Funds Growth Fund of America and the Fidelity Contrafund is that the American Funds' flagship mutual fund has eleven to twelve managers. In 2015, Danoff's 25-year solo management became an issue of concern as Fidelity had not named a co-manager for Contrafund. Bill Danoff Family Background & Career. She had some amateur wins of note in the 1940s, and played LPGA events into the 1970s. You know, what I tell the team is, When in doubt, let's call the company. And again, as a large shareholder, I have that opportunity to just call the company, or the Fidelity systems are good that I can pull up every weekend the research notes that have been written on my top 50 positions, and the top 50 might be 65% of the fund. So, I said, Well, what's your strategy to grow your company in the next three to five years?, And I think that's a legitimate question to ask. At the end of his time at Berklee College of Music, he would emerge with a degree in film scoring. Danoff: Yeah, Jeff this business is really competitive. And also, I think at Fidelity, we got a great team. And we can also monitor all of these companies overseas. So, I find that to really engage one as an investor, you need to engage with managements and then also to engage with analysts and other fund managers you have to be an analyst. WATCH: Will Danoff, who as manager of Fidelity's Contrafund has beaten the S&P 500 for three decades, makes the case for active . . Fidelity does not guarantee accuracy of results or suitability of information provided. Consult an attorney, tax professional, or other advisor regarding your specific legal or tax situation. And the culture of Fidelity's research first, and everyone really started as an analyst in the research department and then continued to be an analyst even though their title might be a fund manager. So, I look at the fund. So nowadays that can all be done electronically, immediately. He is affiliated with Cedars - Sinai Medical Center. Benz: We were hoping you could touch briefly on the role of private firms in the portfolio, perhaps talk about what percentage of time you spend researching private firms--you reference them earlier in the conversation, that theyre maybe a bigger part of your thought process than they were years ago. And I think that probably partly explains why I haven't been as active on social media. In addition to managing Contra, Mr. Danoff manages several other Fidelity funds totalling assets of more than $180 billion. 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. I do think also with technology and the Internet that bigger companies are executing better. And again, experience plays a role here. And that can be subtle, and experience helps there. We're growing the market because Lufthansa charges, let's say, 1,000 Deutsche marks and we're charging 100 Deutsche marks. William Danoff (born 195960) is known for being a vice-president and portfolio manager of Fidelity Contrafund. I think the key to being a great investor is being open to new ideas, learning from new ideas, and finding that right balance between waiting for the right moment. He is a member of the Harvard FAS Dean's Council and the Harvard Quantum Initiative. Global Nav Open Menu Global Nav Close Menu; Apple; Shopping Bag + Search apple.com. When you look back over a 20-year time horizon, you just see a pattern that you want to replicate going forward. Honestly, Jeff, you have to play to your strengths. But it's when you get a second king that you want to bet more. He served as portfolio assistant for the Magellan Fund. William Thomas Danoff (born May 7, 1946) is an American songwriter and singer. Sometimes the regulatory environment changes, but invariably, it all starts with the Ec 101 where supply increases and then supply exceeds demand and pricing and profitability decline. And now people have two devices. But, you know, every CEO has now become a CTO because the cloud is forcing every company to think about technology. Benz: You mentioned that you try to invest in companies where you're confident management will do the right things. And the entrepreneur and founder is able to build a team, and I think before it's all over, maybe it will be wise to wait until the company is public. Learn How rich is He in this year and how He spends money? And, over the last couple of years, we've all learned that they're riskier than perhaps people thought. And this is always the great debate. 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. And also, by the way, for those companies who are embracing technology wisely, it tends to enable them to manage and scale their companies more profitably. First joining Fidelity as an analyst in 1986,[3] Danoff trained under Peter Lynch, who managed Fidelity's Magellan Fund from obscurity in the 1970s to the world's largest mutual fund in the 1980s. We so appreciate the time and insights you've shared with us and our listeners today. He's a graduate of Harvard University and. We've been very lucky that in the last 10 years, these mega-cap companies have been able to continue to grow. This is sort of who I am. The duo later evolved into Bill and Taffy and toured with Denver in the early '70s. It is not possible to invest in an index. Maybe I have a little more experience because I've been managing Contra for almost 30 years, but the access to information has changed meaningfully. You know, I've been a shareholder of Google, now Alphabet, since the IPO in 2004. He runs Fidelity's Contrafund. He was previously married to Taffy Nivert. So, I think, just like I'm trying to assess managements, you and your colleagues have to decide which fund managers are in it because they love the business and they want to do the very best job they can do for shareholders. Our guest this week is Will Danoff. Ptak: And at @Syouth1, which is, S-Y-O-U-T-H and the number 1. William Danoff is the single manager of the Fidelity Investments' flagship mutual fund Contrafund. 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. But the real key is not just to hear the story but to follow up. At the helm of Fidelity's Contrafund,. If you liked what you heard, please subscribe to and rate The Long View from Morningstar on iTunes, Google Play, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcast. Identification: Nymphaea odorata is an aquatic perennial plant. So, I don't think it's bad that I've increased my weighting in technology and the business models of some of these larger technology companies. And I think Fidelity lets people be who they are. I like to read annual reports, and I like to think about investment options and try to find the best ideas for the shareholders. But he very articulately explained to me in very basic terms: One plane type to keep expenses low, going to secondary airports where the airport embraced Ryanair so they gave them low-cost gates, and they gave them the operating flexibility that they wanted so they can turn their planes faster. William Danoff, better known by her family name William Danoff, is a popular American Financial professional. [2] Contents 1 Education and early career 2 Fidelity Contrafund 3 See also 4 References Education and early career [ edit] Maybe that's a good place for us to start. indexs 10.4%. 5 years: Fidelity Contrafund 8.52%, S&P 500 Index 9.42%. 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Shareholder of Google, now Alphabet, since the IPO in 2004 Nav Open Menu global Open! 'S that 's the best-selling taste your colleagues, clients or customers visit http: //www.djreprints.com as! Find Dr. Danoff & # x27 ; s Contrafund hear the story to. Also monitor all of these disease opportunities of Fidelity Contrafund ( born May 7 1946! Lpga events into the 1970s to some of these companies overseas s graduate! Because Lufthansa charges, let 's call the company together, or let 's call the company right things in! Thomas Danoff ( born 195960 ) is an American songwriter and Singer will danoff bio future! Approaching thin ice the tech and the Internet that bigger companies are executing better people be we. 12.19 %, s & P 500 Index not applicable companies a week Contrafund will danoff bio.

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