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His investment skills have been pretty good. But this was such a tacky thing to do. History is full of people who have been done in by their own self-centered actions.
He has good investment skills but I do not like his "character" and so far I have avoided in investing in his new funds even though at one time, I had invested in his fund at TCW.
I had previously said I would never invest with this arrogant you know what so might as well join the chorus in this thread. In trading and investing, arrogance eventually kills. This year he seems to be trailing badly his ex-flagship TCW fund, TGLMX. I recall a few years back as junk bonds were in the midst of their greatest rally ever how he said to stay away from junk. Over the ensuing years he still never warmed to them even as they continued to set all time historical highs. I also can't figure out how if he is such a fan of mortgage bonds, including non agencies, why he is so out-paced by others who share that same conviction ala PONDX, ANGIX, or TGLMX to name just a few.
While I agree that DBLTX grows slowly now, I would not be too emotional about the arrogance of the manager. Since inception, $100 invested in DBLTX have grown up by $39. During the same time $100 invested in TGLMX have grown up only by $28, which is way below the DBLTX results. As for PONDX (actually PIMIX, which is better), during the same time $100 invested there have grown by $47, which is fantastic. But PIMIX achieved this result with much greater volatility. Until the middle of 2012 the total growth of DBLTX since inception was in fact greater than the one of PIMIX in the same time interval.
It is quite interesting to look at the volatility of PIMIX as compared to TGLMX in 2008, when PIMIX has fallen almost 20% in less than a year. For a bond fund, it is really scary. Meanwhile TGLMX, which at that time was managed by the arrogant Gundlach, was very steady, loosing nothing, while PIMIX lost almost 20%.
Thus I wonder how we are going to evaluate this situation when (not if) the bond market crashes, and whether the arrogance of the manager of DBLTX will hurt of help its investors.
I chose that other Double Line bond fund, DLFNX. It has been underwhelming just over the course of the past three months, which is the extent of my tenure in this particular holding. Still too soon, I think, to make a solid judgement as to how well I've done here. It's just 2.64% of my entire holdings. I got in because I wanted/needed a DOMESTIC bond fund that was NOT full of junky stuff.
Well, OK. I can live with that. What you've noted might very well be the source of the small short-term Cap Gain I just saw recorded in my account. Or is it EM BONDS that the fund is in? I'm reading you as meaning "equities."
We agree with those of you who have chosen to invest dollars elsewhere. When I interview managers, a key component I need to take away is TRUST. I just don't get that with Mr. Gundlach. No question he is talented. But we have to trust the folks with whom we entrust client dollars. There is a world of difference between Mr. Gundlach and folks suchs as Dan Fuss, Carl Kaufman, Michael Hasenstab, Sam Finkelstein, and Rick Rieder.
Never mind that Gundlach has poor character or that he is a very talented money manager. What is important and what no one has mentioned yet, Jeffery is a huge Buffalo Bills fan. Go Bills...
Oh, and about bonds, I'm not interested in Doubleline funds for similar reasons as BobC mentioned above. I'll stick with the team at Metropolitan West, MWTRX), along with Ivanscyn and Hasenstab.
I have seen this comparison somewhere, so without trying to be original I just put here this quote: "General Patton's critics considered him arrogant and reckless, but his soldiers admired him as great leader."
I must add that I do not have clear vision and experience. Moreover, during the last months I decreased % of DBLTX in my own portfolio. Still I think that incredible safety of TGLMX in dark times of 2008 is an interesting argument in favor of trusting the person who at that time managed TGLMX.
Reply to @andrei: On second thought, being that I am a relative strength trader/investor I would probably be with Gundlach, arrogance and all, were his performance better in 2012. But there are lots better places to be in bondland. As for 2008 that doesn't fly. You could have used the same argument about the best of the best back then, hedge fund manager John Paulson. Investors flocked to him and the more recent ones are sorely regretting it.
Comments
He has good investment skills but I do not like his "character" and so far I have avoided in investing in his new funds even though at one time, I had invested in his fund at TCW.
It is quite interesting to look at the volatility of PIMIX as compared to TGLMX in 2008, when PIMIX has fallen almost 20% in less than a year. For a bond fund, it is really scary. Meanwhile TGLMX, which at that time was managed by the arrogant Gundlach, was very steady, loosing nothing, while PIMIX lost almost 20%.
Thus I wonder how we are going to evaluate this situation when (not if) the bond market crashes, and whether the arrogance of the manager of DBLTX will hurt of help its investors.
Since you emphasized DOMESTIC in your message, you should know that this fund invests 10% in emerging markets, see http://www.doublelinefunds.com/funds/core_fixed_income/overview.html:
Cash 2.19%
Government 17.73%
Mortgage-Backed Securities 40.92%
Emerging Markets 10.40%
Investment Grade Corporate 21.79%
High Yield Corporate 0.14%
Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities 6.83%
Total 100.0%
http://www.buffalorising.com/2011/05/jeffrey-gundlach-expresses-interest-in-purchasing-buffalo-bills.html
Oh, and about bonds, I'm not interested in Doubleline funds for similar reasons as BobC mentioned above. I'll stick with the team at Metropolitan West, MWTRX), along with Ivanscyn and Hasenstab.
I must add that I do not have clear vision and experience. Moreover, during the last months I decreased % of DBLTX in my own portfolio. Still I think that incredible safety of TGLMX in dark times of 2008 is an interesting argument in favor of trusting the person who at that time managed TGLMX.
http://www.cnbc.com/id/100271335/OneTime_Hedge_Fund_Wiz_Faces_Second_Abysmal_Year