The 20 Rising Stars of Mutual Funds 2008 - (Page 16) Feltus said. He credits Taubes as being his best boss for giving him the space he has needed. “He’s always given me enough rope to hang myself,” he said. “That kind of freedom is important.” Feltus, a chartered financial analyst who has appeared on Bloomberg TV and on CNBC, said the company he admires most is investment management firm Loomis, Sayles & Co. because of Fuss’ approach there. “He’s always stayed true to investment philosophy,” he added. “I think he’s closest to what we’re trying to do.” Feltus predicted that, in 10 years, the fund industry will become more segmented in how various portions play out. “You’re seeing it break down into little pieces,” he said. For example, costs will go down on the index side as investors gain more expertise and performance will be a focus on the alpha side, he explained, adding that alpha is where he wants to be in a decade. financial analyst and a member of the Financial Academy Advisory Board to Chicago’s public schools. At Ariel, Fidler specializes in the industrial, retail and services industries. “Along with my partner - Charlie Bobrinskoy, who is Ariel’s vice chairman - we designed and launched the firm’s first product addressing a space outside of our historical small-cap focus,” he said. “We now have approximately $700 million in assets.” Fidler pointed to Rogers as having inspired him the most. “John has had an enormous impact on my thinking as an analyst, a portfolio manager and a person,” he said. “He is a remarkably creative and independent thinker. As a practicing contrarian investor, you need a culture and a discipline that rewards thinking differently from the crowd. John has built a process, philosophy and company that nurtures and rewards seeing what others do not see and acting with conviction when you are alone in your views.” Fidler said he intends to remain with Ariel over the next decade and continue to grow the firm, but he feels the industry needs to change. “The mutual fund industry will continue evolving along its current path, but I’m not convinced that it is the best direction for retail investors,” he said. “Concentrated, alpha-generating products are increasingly pointing toward the high-net-worth and institutional markets, while funds aimed at the individual retail investor are increasingly becoming quasi-indexed, asset-gathering vehicles for the fund companies.” Fidler got into the industry after taking a year off from studies toward a Ph.D. in economics and going to work for a portfolio manager he met through Northwestern’s economics department chair. “I became quickly…enthralled,” Fidler said. “I was struck by the importance of behavioral psychology and how much emotional control is required to be a successful investor.” He described his biggest accomplishment as becoming only the third portfolio manager in Ariel’s history. 8. TIMOTHY FIDLER The company Fidler admires most is Berkshire Hathaway. “It is an extraordinarily unique company that embodies everything we look for in a business: superior management, pristine balance sheet, rigorous and disciplined capital allocation, an opportunistic posture, rational growth and sustainable competitive advantages,” he said. 8. TIMOTHY FIDLER Portfolio Manager Ariel Capital Management, Chicago Age: 37 Education: Northwestern University (B.A. in Economics); University of Chicago (M.B.A.) Mentors: John Rogers, Founder and Chief Investment Officer, Ariel Capital Management; Christian Stadlinger, Director of Value Strategies, Columbia Management Fidler manages Ariel’s large-cap institutional portfolios and the Ariel Focus Fund, in addition to serving on the firm’s Investment Committee. He joined the firm in 1999 as an assistant portfolio manager and became director of research in 2002. Prior to that, from 1992 to 1996, he was a research analyst and portfolio manager for Morgan Stanley’s U.S. value management teams. He is a chartered 9. CORY GILCHRIST Portfolio Manager Marsico Capital Management, Denver Age: 37 Education: University of Iowa (B.B.A., M.B.A.) Mentor: Thomas Marsico, Founder, CEO and Chief Investment Officer, Marsico Capital Management Gilchrist is portfolio manager for the Marsico 21st Century Fund and a comanager of the Marsico Global Fund, 16 MUTUAL FUND RISING STARS JANUARY 2008
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