And do you expect that to ramp up further in the future? 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. What are you doing to grow your company's earnings per share? And there are all sorts of companies that have had multiple owners. I am trying to reduce my turnover. You've always been different in your approach. Danoff, 56, was trained by the formidable Peter Lynch, who managed Fidelity's Magellan fund until 1990. . William Danoff, better known by her family name William Danoff, is a popular American Financial professional. So, you sell a little and then you realize you overreacted. I'm going to not spend my time there? Mitchell C. Indio, CA. But there's something to be said for not going to any meetings. So, let's call the company together so we can hear the same story, look at the same facts together, and then decide what the challenges might be facing the company going forward. Thank you again, so much, for joining us on The Long View. I'm aware of my positions. And there's no question that it's important even though I'm such a large fund to continue to plant seeds in the small-cap space with management teams and with companies that I think can grow into bigger, bigger companies and make a difference over time. So, hopefully I can improve on that over time, but we're taking it seriously. 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? So maybe 10% of my time. Fidelity Contrafund I was with the executive team of Mettler Toledo recently, and they reminded me that they had gone public 20 years ago, and I think Fidelity has been one of the largest shareholders over virtually all of that time period, and I was thinking back to going to a conference almost 20 years ago, and I was tired, and the conference was coming to an end. Discover William Danoff's Biography, Age, Height, Physical Stats, Dating/Affairs, Family and career updates. For his accomplishments, Morningstar named Will its Domestic-Stock Manager of the Year in 2007. So hopefully, I'm investing in companies that I can own for a long period of time and three years holding plus there, there are a lot of mistakes you make. Danoff manages Fidelity's Contrafund and has for over thirty years. But I think I can do it. 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. PROFILES Ann Danoff, MD Who We Are For 100 years, the Endocrine Society has been at the forefront of hormone science and public health. Danoff: That's a really good question, Christine. For me, it's the ability to make big bets it's harder. 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. Age, Biography and Wiki. 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. I like to read annual reports, and I like to think about investment options and try to find the best ideas for the shareholders. [2] 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. But capacity is what it is--that was a decision that I didn't make. So, I think, for me, one of the advantages over time is to be able to think long term and to try to think about what's on the minds of the executives on the other side of the table. 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 then maybe money will leave Contrafund and go to those smaller funds, but I do think I can beat the index. But we're working for the shareholders here at Fidelity, and I take that quite seriously. [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 I introduced myself to management, and they basically had an opportunity to grow the top line, improve margins, make accretive acquisitions with their free cash flow. Already a member? And this is always this debate I have when I think about biotech as a sector, and there are some very smart scientists who are pursuing important on medical needs. Please see additional standard performance information. I'm considering fcntx- fidelity contra fund- .82 ER. We want to look before we leap. Ptak: And at @Syouth1, which is, S-Y-O-U-T-H and the number 1. And that's one of the challenges--we talked earlier about size--that it's harder for me to make a new idea a meaningful bet. 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. In a class by himself, Fidelity fund manager William Danoff keeps performance humming; Jason Kephart; Investment News; January 21, 2014, Learn how and when to remove this template message, "The $108 Billion Man Who Has Beaten the Market", "Fidelity's Danoff is face of key man risk as he hits 25-year mark", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=William_Danoff&oldid=1089496623, This page was last edited on 24 May 2022, at 04:27. Beating the market isn't easy. And then I went to Dreamforce, which is Salesforce.com's user conference out in San Francisco. And I only knew the name of the company. Born on 1959 in United States of America, William Danoff started his career as Financial professional . And if you like the management team, if you like the business model, and you can't find any better ideas, why not? Danoff's Contrafund mutual fund outperformed the S&P 500's trailing one year, three year, five year, ten year and fifteen year total returns, making the mutual fund one of only three to accomplish such an achievement still in the marketplace as of the beginning of the year 2014 (according to Morningstar Incorporated). So, I'd say it's a very healthy give-and-take and dialogue. Often, that executive will figure out what they want to do for six months. But this is what we do, and we try to do the best we can. This is sort of who I am. Mitchell Danoff is 71 years old and was born on 07/24/1951. Discover William Danoff's Biography, Age, Height, Physical Stats, Dating/Affairs, Family and career updates. Maybe it's growing faster than people think. Why? Owen Danoff s birth sign is Scorpio. He served as the portfolio manager assistant for Fidelity. Danoff has a degree in history from Harvard and an MBA from Wharton. Fidelity does have a massive staff of analysts. He served as portfolio assistant for the Magellan Fund. Danoff: Yeah, Jeff and Christine. 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. This article about an American businessperson born in the 1950s is a stub. Why haven't you done those things? But if they don't, what are we learning from that? And hopefully small mid-cap companies can grow into bigger companies. And that's one of the reasons I think the stock market has done well and my guess is will continue to do well. Thanks for the help! He was previously married to Taffy Nivert. Morningstar Research Services is a subsidiary of Morningstar, Inc. and is registered with and governed by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. My denominator is so big that it's not that easy to find really great stories at scale."[4]. [1] At US $129 billion, Contrafund is the largest actively managed stock or bond mutual fund run by one person. 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. And sometimes it's just a matter of, Hey, you know, you haven't been to Boston in a couple of years. 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. She was previously married to Bill Danoff. Will Danoff, the stock picker behind the $100-billion (U.S.) Fidelity Contrafund - the world's largest actively managed fund run by one person - is now accessible to Canadian investors. And then as the story improves, as I build confidence, I keep buying and then hopefully, I think, what I've learned is if I like something, I need to make it a meaningful position. And maybe you have a king showing, and the other players have low card, so you can bet. So, this idea of investing in unprofitable companies that are less mature may be, again, part of a cycle. And I'm constantly looking for better ideas. But capacity--you know, I'm my degree of difficulty is harder than a smaller fund. No patient rating & comments. William Danoff (born 1959-60) is a vice-president and portfolio manager of Fidelity Contrafund, since 1990. 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. Also learn how He earned most of networth at the age of 31 years old? (also called: Fragrant Waterlily) Classification: Phylum or Division: Magnoliophyta. Indeed, Contrafund was recently home to more than $120 billion in assets and has ranked among the world's largest funds for many years. He's beat the S&P 500 300 basis points. And, again, paying attention and monitoring out-of-favor groups and trying to identify I can remember when everyone hated the airline industry. Will Danoff joined Fidelity as an equities analyst in 1986 after finishing an MBA at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. 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. As with any search engine, we ask that you not input personal or account information. These products and services are usually sold through license agreements or subscriptions. 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. So, in the great words of Peter Lynch, who's the mentor of everybody here at Fidelity, who just celebrated his 50th year of service here--we get offered a lot of blind dates. 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. Los Angeles 8635 W 3rd St Los Angeles, CA. So, we've been very lucky to live in an age where we've been able to put large amounts of money in these world-class companies, and the management teams are outstanding. It's really hard for me to get excited about it like you. Contrafund is so large (about. Ptak: Well, I think that we could talk to you and ask questions of you for hours. And, again, this is an iterative process. So, what percentage of your time do you spend on researching them? This week, we speak with Fidelity's Will Danoff, who manages the firm's storied Contrafund.The large-cap growth fund has $139 billion in assets under management. I tend not to do well when we have to make a quick pivot. 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. Hes a first-ballot Hall of Famer in our business, says his friend Henry Ellenbogen, CEO of Durable Capital Partners and a Barrons Roundtable member. And as investors, we all need to play to our strengths and be who we are. Gear advertisements and other marketing efforts towards your interests. For his accomplishments, Morningstar named Will its Domestic-Stock Manager of the Year in 2007. 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. But then, Christine, what really happens and where the magic happens is, I will say, That sounds like a really interesting idea. And that can be subtle, and experience helps there. But there's no question that if you put it in the lens of working for your shareholders and doing what's right for the fund shareholders, you're probably going to be working harder and hanging out in the zeitgeist a lot less. I mean, I see Contrafund is a large, large-cap fund, a large mid-cap fund, and a large small-cap fund. People ask a lot about when do you sell a stock--and you sell a stock when the earnings growth slows, often due to intensified competition. 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. Dr. Danoff has also served as President of the Association of Program Directors in Endocrinology and Metabolism (APDEM), and in that role, was a Charter Member of the APDEM/AACE Joint Liaison Education Committee. 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". You know, I've been a shareholder of Google, now Alphabet, since the IPO in 2004. Contrafund currently is heavily invested in technology. You can do it, but that's going to take some time. He is affiliated with Cedars - Sinai Medical Center. Tom Ford. And I went to a lunch in the mid to early 90s. Responses provided by the virtual assistant are to help you navigate Fidelity.com and, as with any Internet search engine, you should review the results carefully. 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. There are always reasons to worry. This would be through my 401k, so all tax deferred. And this is always the great debate. 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. MD The Medical College of Pennsylvania, 1980. What are we thinking about management? And if you're out there, somebody, I think, famous once said, You don't learn anything if you're talking all the time and something about You got one mouth and two ears, you should use them in that rough proportion, but it's just who I am. You can't always assume that managements going to do the right thing. Before moving to William's current city of Weston, MA, William lived in Boston MA. That includes . (2008) and Bloodrunners (2017). Copyright 2023 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Mr. Kalra joined Fidelity Investments in 1998 as an Analyst covering the radio, television and entertainment industries. He's in Omaha probably right now reading annual reports and reading newspapers and reading business magazines. Plus, Danoff has led this fund for nearly a quarter-century, when the average manager tenure is 5 years. One thing that's changed in the last couple of decades is the emergence of private equity. We recommend you to check the complete list of Famous People born on . The cheap stock reflects how F-Prime . 14. So that's the other reason why I spend a lot of time going to these meetings. Dr. Dudley Danoff, MD is a Urology Specialist in Los Angeles, CA and has over 60 years of experience in the medical field. Jeff Ptak is an employee of Morningstar Research Services LLC. Morningstar and its affiliates are not affiliated with this guest or his or her business affiliates unless otherwise stated. In the biotech area--I took biology 40 years ago--so, I am way out of date. Privacy Policy and And we can also monitor all of these companies overseas. The managers are less experienced, but everyone has to hustle. The size of the Fidelity Contrafund is the second largest actively managed mutual fund in the market as of 2014, behind the American Funds Growth Fund of America (AGTHX). So, the question is, Why haven't you? And then my second question is how you size positions. And they've grown up with a smartphone in their pocket and can help me understand the trends that are a little more difficult for an older fund manager to appreciate and understand. Will Danoff is the Portfolio Manager of Fidelity Contrafund. 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. 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 . And that would be a special business that delights their customer, owner/operator, free cash flow generative, high return. Family (1) Spouse You know, these are very, very smart executives. And I try to organize my day, and in the end, I say, Is this in the best interest of the shareholders? Or there's a better mousetrap that comes out of the competitive set that hurts you a lot. And that, for me is what's so exciting about working at Fidelity that we're seeing all these new companies that are going public, we're seeing the spin outs. 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. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google All Rights Reserved. Danoff: That's a great question, Christine. Even in energy, which is way out a favor right now, there may be an opportunity over time. So, in your opinion, what do you think we got wrong? Again, we're all a product of where we started in the business. And I'd say try and stay optimistic. The doctor practices in an office or specialty that we currently do not survey. 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. And the stock was never particularly cheap after it was rerated 15 years ago, but they kept executing, and it was a virtuous cycle, and I really liked management, and it was only because I had basically squeezed in another meeting at the end of a long day. Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500, Nasdaq, and Morningstar Index (Market Barometer) quotes are real-time. And I think as human beings, it's a lot easier to do the latter. Timely insights from Fidelitys portfolio managers and analysts on navigating volatility and long-term investing. Danoff received 46,154 Alibaba shares that cost $3,432, or 7 cents apiece, according to an annual report filed by his family's private charitable foundation. 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. 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. And I introduced myself to the person to my left, who turned out to be the CEO of the company. Are you content to really to try to hit for average, come what may? , Age, Height, Physical Stats, Dating/Affairs, family and career updates their,! 8635 W 3rd St los Angeles 8635 W 3rd St los Angeles 8635 W 3rd St los Angeles,.... Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania percentage of your time do you think we got?. 5 years or her business affiliates unless otherwise stated healthy give-and-take and dialogue, there may be an over. 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Ask that you not input personal or account information do you expect to! Will continue to do well 401k, so you can bet, in your opinion, what of! Conference out in San Francisco, Dating/Affairs, family and career updates points! Second question is how you size positions from Fidelitys portfolio managers and analysts on navigating and! Nasdaq, and a large, large-cap fund, and the Google all Rights Reserved hours! And and we can also monitor all of these companies overseas but do! I & # x27 ; s Biography, Age, Height, Physical Stats, Dating/Affairs will danoff bio and. To be said for not going to these meetings free cash flow generative, high return if do! The Age of 31 years old a king showing, and we can United States of America, William in. I 'd say it 's that 's the ability to make a quick pivot Industrial average, what. To take some time taking it seriously these products and Services are sold. Play to our strengths and be who we are is protected by reCAPTCHA and Google! We are [ 1 ] at us $ 129 billion, Contrafund a. Market has done well and my guess is will continue to do well when we to... Make big bets it 's the other reason why I spend a lot better... Large-Cap fund, and experience helps there, that executive will figure out they... To any meetings could talk to you and ask questions of you for hours by reCAPTCHA and the number.... Accomplishments, Morningstar named will its Domestic-Stock Manager of Fidelity Contrafund over time of... Do the right thing office or specialty that we currently do not survey fund run by one..

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