At some point, somebody said, You really should go to a lunch and meet Ryanair. And I said, Really? And they're the low-cost operator in Europe. And also, I think at Fidelity, we got a great team. The duo later evolved into Bill and Taffy and toured with Denver in the early '70s. He has been married to Joan Grbach since 1988. Tom Ford. I do think there are owner/operator management teams that tend to do the right thing over time. But even in the utility space, you can find interesting special situations. Order: Nymphaeales. His office accepts new patients. Our guest this week is Will Danoff. 5 years: Fidelity Contrafund 8.52%, S&P 500 Index 9.42%. We may use it to: To learn more about how we handle and protect your data, visit our privacy center. Dr. Danoff has a research interest in outpatient joint replacement, rapid recovery protocols and multimodal pain regimens to decrease postoperative pain. As of July 2018, the fund has continued its outperformance over the S&P 500. Our authors can publish views that we may or may not agree with, but they show their work, distinguish facts from opinions, and make sure their analysis is clear and in no way misleading or deceptive. Will Danoff is the Portfolio Manager of Fidelity Contrafund. And I said, I have to go to this presentation. They've got their EarPods, they've got an iPad, they've got a computer. We've been very lucky that in the last 10 years, these mega-cap companies have been able to continue to grow. I mean, if you think about it, Jeff and Christine and listeners, maybe 10 years ago, you had one smartphone-type device. I think they're managing their size very, very well. 8/12/2019. 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. But that's just speculation. During his 32-year manager tenure, the Fidelity Contrafund (FCNTX) has averaged an incredible 12.56% annualized average return, more than 2% greater than the annual returns from the benchmark S&P 500 Index.*. I mean, when I was an analyst, I can remember calling companies after they reported and pleading with somebody in the CFOs office to either read me the details of the income statement and balance sheet, or then to fax me the information quickly, but I do remember part of the job was to call the company and ask for a packet. I would say, just to answer your question, Christine, we're going to continue to engage with the private companies. Christine Benz: And I'm Christine Benz, director of personal finance for Morningstar, Inc. Ptak: Our guest this week is Will Danoff. Discover William Danoff's Biography, Age, Height, Physical Stats, Dating/Affairs, Family and career updates. Or do you just keep that to yourself? Fidelity does have a massive staff of analysts. But how often, if ever, do you get involved with giving management your opinion about what you think they ought to do? 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? Morningstar does not guarantee the accuracy, or the completeness of the data presented herein. 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? So, I don't think the process is different whether you're looking at small-cap, mid-cap, or large-cap companies. Do you attempt to improve what you're not good at? And being a very large fund has enabled me to have an unbelievably strong research department. I'm monitoring my existing ideas, and I'm across the table from decision-makers or other executives saying, What are you doing to strengthen your franchise? He is a member of the Harvard FAS Dean's Council and the Harvard Quantum Initiative. Gear advertisements and other marketing efforts towards your interests. Because, I think, the return on equity for the average S&P 500 company is close to 20%. Contrafund is one of Fidelity's largest mutual funds holding over $129 billion in assets, making it the largest single-manager mutual fund in the world. So nowadays that can all be done electronically, immediately. I hadn't really prepared, but I was just going to just learn about this new company. This copy is for your personal, non-commercial use only. 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. And, you know, I would say this business is sort of like a poker game. Born on 1959 in United States of America, William Danoff started his career as Financial professional . And maybe they're doing too many initiatives, maybe they're not as good as they thought. That has been a change over the last couple of years. And, as you know, there were constraints on when you can book and only one class and no free food and all that stuff. Danoff: That's a really good question, Christine. William Danoff is currently vice president at Fidelity Investments. In 2015, Danoff's 25-year solo management became an issue of concern as Fidelity had not named a co-manager for Contrafund. You think about if you were an employee at a company like that. I've invested less over the last year or two than I feel like I did earlier on. I have told your colleagues--Katie's done a great job monitoring what I've done at Contra over many years--that if I didn't think I could beat the S&P 500 I would ask to close the fund. And they just sent a picture to me--and this was before email--and I saved the letter, and I happen to open it, luckily, and it caught my eye. And if you haven't seen it, it's a very good letter. 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. 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. And as you know, Jeff and Christine, the stock market is a reflection of what's really happening out there. William Thomas Danoff (born May 7, 1946) is an American songwriter and singer. William Danoff, who has led a long and successful career in finance, is a vice president and fund manager with Fidelity Investments. Why are you here? And often there is a story to be told, and they want to express it to potentially large shareholders, and sometimes there is a subtext, and you've got to try to anticipate what are the other person's objectives. 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. Again, I tend to want to invest with managements who I think are going to do the right thing over time, but there's a lot of trust there. So, anyway, I would say again, for me, it's sort of like the chef tasting the soup, Jeff. Consistently outperforming the market is very hard. To order presentation-ready copies for distribution to your colleagues, clients or customers visit http://www.djreprints.com. I went to see Dr Danoff for an second for a second opinion and ultimately biopsies. How we use your information depends on the product and service that you use and your relationship with us. And if you're working all the time, then you're probably missing what's happening in the world. Also learn how He earned most of networth at the age of 31 years old? 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 they've just kept executing. He's a graduate of Harvard University and earned his MBA at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. I am a full-time practicing urologic surgeon at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. She had some amateur wins of note in the 1940s, and played LPGA events into the 1970s. But the real key is not just to hear the story but to follow up. the largest U.S. mutual fund run by a single manager. And this letter was written by the parents of a young child, 1 year old boy. Class: Magnoliopsida. And the analysts ideally are coming to me with their best ideas. The value of the fund's domestic and foreign investments will vary from day to day in response to many factors. Do we decide to buy another company or one of their customers or one of their suppliers? And if you do that every day, for 29 or 30 years over time you gain some expertise and hopefully you improve your batting average and add value to the shareholders. As with any search engine, we ask that you not input personal or account information. India is emerging as an important experimental ground for a lot of new technology as well. 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. So, I went, and I was really excited about the story. He's beat the S&P 500 300 basis points. That includes . William Danoff (born 1959-60) is known for being a vice-president and portfolio manager of Fidelity Contrafund. But when it comes to some of the tech and the biotech, I'm treading more lightly. Ptak: Well, I think that we could talk to you and ask questions of you for hours. I'm aware of that. I do think also with technology and the Internet that bigger companies are executing better. And I try to organize my day, and in the end, I say, Is this in the best interest of the shareholders? Will Danoff is one of the best stock investors in the world. And the question was, Do you go to the 5 o'clock presentation, or do you take off and go for a walk and relax a little bit after a long day? 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. 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. The market, as you know, has been unbelievably good. Learn How rich is He in this year and how He spends money? Before moving to William's current city of Weston, MA, William lived in Boston MA. The cheap stock reflects how F-Prime . Danoff manages Fidelity's Contrafund and has for over thirty years. We recommend you to check the complete list of Famous People born on . Do you wait for good phase 3 data? 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 your opinion, what do you think we got wrong? [2] Contents 1 Education and early career 2 Fidelity Contrafund 3 See also 4 References Education and early career [ edit] Benz: You can follow us on Twitter @Christine_Benz. They hand off responsibility for security research and talking to management. Low interest rates have created certain distortions in valuation. But capacity--you know, I'm my degree of difficulty is harder than a smaller fund. Ptak: Bye. There are some tricks to the trade that I implement. 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. And in talking to company management--what do you think you get from that experience? 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. 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. Call to Schedule. And there are all sorts of companies that have had multiple owners. All information you provide will be used by Fidelity solely for the purpose of sending the email on your behalf. Ptak: If I may, I wanted to ask quickly about portfolio construction--a couple of aspects of it. What's happening in Latin America--there's a lot of innovation right now in Brazil in fintech and in the Internet as well. Or there's a better mousetrap that comes out of the competitive set that hurts you a lot. But we're always learning, we're trying to stay flexible, we're trying to keep an open mind. Clearly, there is survivor bias in the S&P 500, so it is hard to add value over time. Do you wait for FDA approval? The American Funds team managed about $138.9 Billion; about a quarter larger than Contrafund. Letters, Fidelity Investments TV commercial, Securities and Exchange Commissions Investment Company Liquidity Risk Management Program. All Rights Reserved. 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. Age, Biography and Wiki. We sell different types of products and services to both investment professionals and individual investors. So, seven or eight years ago, there were a lot of very good opportunities. Morningstar Research Services is a subsidiary of Morningstar, Inc. and is registered with and governed by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. They live in Weston, Massachusetts, and are the parents of Amelia Danoff, a member of the University's Class of 2023, who is concentrating in Italian. In 2007, Morningstar named him ``Domestic Stock Manager of the Year``. Mitchell Danoff is 71 years old and was born on 07/24/1951. 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? An error has occurred, please try again later. Benz: So, speaking of new ideas and the analysts role in this: What percentage of new ideas that make it into the portfolio would you say analysts source for you versus those that you've identified yourself? And that the key was to sweat your assets and fill your planes out by charging a low price. But this is what we do, and we try to do the best we can. 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. Danoff: I think over time, maybe, you grow as an individual and you gain experience. You may have a gain or loss when you sell your shares. Maybe it's growing faster than people think. Thanks so much. 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. Ami Kuan Danoff has held many leadership roles in finance, including vice president at Putnam Investments, but most recently has dedicated her time to philanthropic endeavors. (2008) and Bloodrunners (2017). Since he took over on Sept. 17, 1990 . I have to explain that I've become a little stodgy in my old age. William Danoff was born on 1960. 2. 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. Permanent link 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. It is a violation of law in some jurisdictions to falsely identify yourself in an email. I am trying to reduce my turnover. Thank you again, so much, for joining us on The Long View. And also Im at an age I know who I am, and I know when I'm on thin ice and doing something that I'm not great at. Its leaves have a thick waxy coating, are nearly circular with a notch at the . And I wish I could say, I'm all in on the first visit, but often, I don't get conviction until later on. 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. Family (1) Spouse He has crossed all the competition over 30 years. And it's an iterative game. Fidelity Contrafund E. rosea has become invasive and has exerted a major ecological impact on the native Hawaiian snail fauna. Terms of Service apply. But at the time, people weren't paying attention to airlines and Europe was sort of a no growth, low growth space. So, what percentage of your time do you spend on researching them? Timely insights from Fidelitys portfolio managers and analysts on navigating volatility and long-term investing. I remember as a young analyst being told to go to a lunch, and I raced to the meeting--or I think it was maybe when I was a young fund manager in the early 90s. 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