Morningstar Advisor - Spring 2008 - (Page 66) Undiscovered Managers The short bouts of underperformance haven’t derailed Motola’s long-term record. Since its inception in 2000, the fund has outpaced the average mid-growth fund by nearly 4 percentage points a year through March. Thornburg International Growth is still too young to draw meaningful inferences about its performance, but it has gotten a good start, and the same philosophy and discipline back it. Breaking the Common Mold resides in Fries’ fund, Thornburg Value TVAFX, as well as in Thornburg Core Growth. Looking at things differently doesn’t end there. “If all you’ve learned in business school is to read Warren Buffett and to buy cheap companies that are great businesses— that’s obvious,” Motola says. “Guess what? The whole world’s looking for that. It’s not an investment strategy.” Motola doesn’t think that his investment strategy is the only one worth using. Although he stays true to his discipline, he encourages members of his team to develop their own philosophies. “I could sit all analysts down and say, ‘Here’s exactly how I do it.’ If you don’t believe in your own core analytical approach, you’re just not going to be that good of an analyst,” he says. With the research-charged way he approaches investing and the intellectual freedom he invites in his analysts, maybe Motola did become something like a professor after all. K Karen Dolan, CFA, is Morningstar’s director of fund analysis. How To: Find Stocks Motola and Fries Share In Morningstar Advisor Workstation Office Edition, to see what stocks both Alex Motola and Bill Fries own, go to the Research view. Select Thornburgh Core Growth A and Thornburg Value A. Click the Action button and select Reports. Then select Stock Intersection. A complete list of both funds’ holdings appear. Click the Expand/Collapse All button to see which holdings are owned by both funds. Motola, the growth manager, says that he frequently talks with Fries, the value manager. They’re the polar opposites of how a growth and a value manager are usually wired. Motola puts it best. “You’d think he runs a growth fund and I run the value fund,” he says. “I’m more cynical and worried about what can go wrong, and he’s full of optimism and sees companies full of promise.” It’s a healthy contrast, and their dialogue has been productive. They hold some of the same stocks. Google GOOG, for example, 66 Morningstar Advisor Spring 2008 ©2008 Morningstar. All rights reserved. The Morningstar name and logo are registered marks of Morningstar. Marks used in conjunction with Morningstar products or services are the property of Morningstar or its subsidiaries. All other marks are the property of their respective owners. Product specifications are subject to change without notice. Show Your Clients What You See http://global.morningstar.com/CommunicationMaterials
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