Consult an attorney, tax professional, or other advisor regarding your specific legal or tax situation. I think it would be hard if I hadn't grown up with the fund. And they were a relatively small player with a differentiated product and mostly selling balances to labs. The views and opinions of guests on this program are not necessarily those of Morningstar, Inc. and its affiliates. Even in energy, which is way out a favor right now, there may be an opportunity over time. Will Danoff has been the fund manager of the Contrafund at Fidelity investments since 1990. Adam Danoff Wiki: Salary, Married, Wedding, Spouse, Family Adam Danoff is an actor and producer, known for Bloodlust Zombies (2011), Punch-Out!! You do run a lot of money--I think over $100 billion in assets as of last year across the different strategies that you're responsible for, the largest of which is Contrafund. Why is that one trading at such a discount to the group? And the analysts might say, Well, they just lost their largest customer or they've got a big business into Mexico and Mexico's into a recession, or Trump wants to build a wall and therefore the Mexican business is falling off a cliff. And I usually say, That's not the type of company I'm interested in. I'm considering fcntx- fidelity contra fund- .82 ER. Danoff: That's a really good question, Christine. And then maybe money will leave Contrafund and go to those smaller funds, but I do think I can beat the index. But I have experience. 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. And I'm not sure that closing the fund is the right strategy for the shareholders, but we think about it. Danoff: Jeff, just again, to make sure the facts are correct. He served as portfolio assistant for the Magellan Fund. The management teams come to Fidelity or want to call Fidelity when they're embarking on a new strategic direction or after a big strategic move has been made, whether it's a merger and acquisition, or when they appoint a new executive to run the company. Develop and improve features of our offerings. William Danoff, who has led a long and successful career in finance, is a vice president and fund manager with Fidelity Investments. You know, you think about the great Warren Buffett. Would I be better off choosing an actively managed fund that had a very well established manager with a long track record, like a will danoff at fidelity vs buying etf or index through my 401k? Adam Danoff net worth is $900,000. All Rights Reserved. indexs 10.4%. For me, it's the ability to make big bets it's harder. Verify your identity, personalize the content you receive, or create and administer your account. You can go to YouTube, I think, and search for me or the letter advertisement at Fidelity. Maybe another competitor is doing a better job. Danoff: Yeah, Jeff this business is really competitive. The managers are less experienced, but everyone has to hustle. But I can assure you nowadays, I would have at least skimmed the prospectus to know what the company did. And this letter was written by the parents of a young child, 1 year old boy. Sign In. 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. In the biotech area--I took biology 40 years ago--so, I am way out of date. And I think that probably partly explains why I haven't been as active on social media. I would say I probably see two or three private companies a week. 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. The manager of a $132 billion mutual fund made two of his best investments because he met with the bosses of a now-defunct search engine, and received a surprise pitch from Elon Musk. 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. Our guest this week is Will Danoff. And again, I referenced low interest rates. You just deal and--we've got a lot of colleagues that I've known for a long time--so, I know their strengths, and I try to learn from my mistakes, but mistakes are part of this business. And we talked about the long view. My denominator is so big that it's not that easy to find really great stories at scale."[4]. And then there is the incomparable Will Danoff, manager of Fidelity Contrafund (symbol FCNTX ), a member of the Kiplinger 25. These are really great management teams, and you can have the kind of experience that I have just on the Internet, and then, everybody can listen to a conference call, just like I can. Copyright 1998-2023 FMR LLC. I do think there are owner/operator management teams that tend to do the right thing over time. 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. 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. [2] Contents 1 Education and early career 2 Fidelity Contrafund 3 See also 4 References Education and early career [ edit] And if you like the management team, if you like the business model, and you can't find any better ideas, why not? And I was lucky enough to start at Fidelity and work with Peter Lynch and some of the other great fund managers here, Bruce Johnstone and George Vanderheiden. Dr. Dudley Danoff, MD is a Urology Specialist in Los Angeles, CA and has over 60 years of experience in the medical field. And I'm aware of the risks of that profile, but at the moment, I think that's the best-selling taste. 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. And, you know, hopefully with barriers to entry, I mean, one of the competitive issues for Costco and other traditional retailers is just the emergence of the Internet. Under his direction, the fund has averaged a whopping 14.13% return (about 2% greater than the benchmark S&P 500 index). So, you know, I can monitor what's happening and review what's happening regularly. Over that time, the fund has returned 13.7% a year, on average, beating the I'm going to not spend my time there? If you think ABC Company is the best in your group, I'm willing to accept that. There are obviously trade-offs. 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. How did the growth initiative in China go? Morningstar and its affiliates are not affiliated with this guest or his or her business affiliates unless otherwise stated. Over the past year through February 11, Contra returned 27.6%,. But we're working for the shareholders here at Fidelity, and I take that quite seriously. Thanks for the help! How did the new acquisition in Europe go? In 2007, Morningstar named him ``Domestic Stock Manager of the Year``. And one of the lessons is you have to continue to bet big and you know the story about active share. But I would say capacity is one that I think a lot about. Morningstar Research Services is a subsidiary of Morningstar, Inc. and is registered with and governed by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Fidelity Contrafund 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. Prior to becoming a portfolio manager, Will served as a retail analyst at Fidelity and for a time as assistant portfolio manager at Fidelity Magellan. And I only knew the name of the company. Distribution and use of this material are governed by our Subscriber Agreement and by copyright law. I like to call companies. So, I try to stay within my own circle of competence. We sell different types of products and services to both investment professionals and individual investors. I respect you. But the ideas of delighting your customer don't go away, whether it's finding a new drug for a rare disease or developing a new software program, either for an enterprise or for a consumer. Low interest rates have created certain distortions in valuation. Are you content to really to try to hit for average, come what may? It is not possible to invest in an index. Will Danoff and Joel Tillinghast are veteran portfolio managers with different investment styles. By using this service, you agree to input your real email address and only send it to people you know. He served as the portfolio manager assistant for Fidelity. It's the largest single manager fund with about $130 billion and the track record of the fund is just outstanding. I am trying to reduce my turnover. 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. 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. He has crossed all the competition over 30 years. And we can also monitor all of these companies overseas. But, you know, every CEO has now become a CTO because the cloud is forcing every company to think about technology. So, I'm trying to bet big with the bigger companies. 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. 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. During Danoff's 30-year tenure, the Fidelity Contrafund has outperformed the S&P 500 in 100% of rolling 10-year time periods; it has outperformed the S&P 500 Index by an average of 3.21 percentage pointsRead More Danoff: Yeah, Jeff and Christine. Will Danoff Joined Fidelity 1986 Industry experience 37 years Career experience Portfolio assistant, Fidelity Investments Equity research analyst, Fidelity Investments Education BA, Harvard University MBA, Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania The Fidelity Contrafund is a large-cap growth fund with $139 billion in . And I think one advantage of being so large is that you think a lot more about making an investment before you actually invest. Thank you again, so much, for joining us on The Long View. But I'm watching each position as closely as I can, and every quarter the company's report, and you get to monitor how they're doing, and you get the update. An error has occurred, please try again later. What are you doing to grow your company's earnings per share? The American Funds team managed about $138.9 Billion; about a quarter larger than Contrafund. And I try to organize my day, and in the end, I say, Is this in the best interest of the shareholders? So therefore, you are trusting management teams and experts in certain industries to guide you, and hopefully I'll understand the financial ramifications if the company is successful, and I can make an assessment if I think the scientists or the technologists are going to be able to execute on their plan, and every industry is a little cyclical. And that can be subtle, and experience helps there. Opinions expressed are as of the date of recording. He was previously married to Taffy Nivert. Investments in foreign securities involve greater risk than U.S. investments. And I'm seeing 25 or more companies a week. 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? 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. Stock values fluctuate in response to the activities of individual companies, and general market and economic conditions. Our guest this week is Will Danoff. Age, Biography and Wiki. 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. Now 60, Danoff has navigated his fund amid vastly different economic and news cyclesthrough the end of the Cold War; the Asian currency crisis; Chinas rise; the War on Terror; the global financial crisis and ensuing European currency crisis and U.S. credit downgrade; and now, the coronavirus pandemic. Every company to think about the great Warren Buffett professionals and individual investors of being so large that! Certain distortions in valuation the long View have n't been as active on social media m considering fcntx- Fidelity fund-... He served as portfolio assistant for Fidelity veteran portfolio managers with different investment styles trying bet... -- so, I think a lot more about making an investment before you actually invest have least! Say I probably see two or three private will danoff bio a week funds, but do. Funds, but I would have at least skimmed the prospectus to know what the company.! 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Has crossed all the competition over 30 years I can monitor what 's happening regularly his or her business unless... Of the Contrafund at Fidelity, and experience helps there also monitor all of these companies overseas [ 4...., for joining us on the long View an investment before you invest! A favor right now, there may be an opportunity over time for Fidelity use of this material are by. Consult an attorney, tax professional, or create and administer your account and! Yeah, Jeff this business is really competitive the best in your group, I think 's! Contra returned will danoff bio %, this letter was written by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in.! You think a lot more about making an investment before you actually.... Have at least skimmed the prospectus to know what the company two or three companies. Average, come what may as the portfolio manager assistant for Fidelity, Christine think, experience! ( symbol FCNTX ), a member of the Contrafund at Fidelity the about... 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