One of the most wildly successful mutual fund PMs around is catching flak for flying solo.

William Danoff Fidelity Contrafund Vice President, Portfolio Manager

David Randall of Reuters highlights the fact that Will Danoff, who PMs the biggest single-manager active mutual fund in the U.S, has no co-PMs on the fund to lighten his load or to step into his shoes should he depart Fidelity [profile] abruptly. This fall the Boston Behemoth will celebrate 25 years of the star PM overseeing the now-$106.3-billion Fidelity Contrafund. Reuters worries about what would happen if Danoff, 55, were to depart Fidelity suddenly.

To put Contrafund's size in perspective, per the wire service the fund is more than twice the size of the next biggest single-manager stock fund.

Fundsters, take heed. Star PMs like Danoff can attract lots investors, not to mention media attention, but if they don't have someone sharing the burden then you, too, might soon be facing awkward questions about unexpected departures. The article notes that FAs and institutional investors usually want funds to have at least three-year track records under current PMs.

Brian Hogan, head of Fidelity's equity divison, tells Reuters that "Will is not going anywhere."

"I can say that with a lot of confidence," Hogan reportedly says.

"There is a key man risk with Contrafund," Morningstar analyst Katie Rushkewicz Reichart tells Reuters. "Not only has Danoff done quite well but he's managing such a large sum of money that it's not a role that another person could easily step into." 

Edited by: Neil Anderson, Managing Editor


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