Here's a statement of the obvious: The opinions expressed here are those of the participants, not those of the Mutual Fund Observer. We cannot vouch for the accuracy or appropriateness of any of it, though we do encourage civility and good humor.
Support MFO
Donate through PayPal
William Danoff, portfolio manager of the Contrafund, will retire
Will Danoff has managed Fidelity Contrafund since September 1990. M* reports that the fund's no-load share class gained 14.2% annualized during his tenure (through 01/26/2026). The S&P 500 and the Russell 1000 Growth Index gained 11.3% and 11.8% respectively during the same period. Contrafund's total return exceeded that of nearly all surviving large-cap funds. Mr. Danoff has done pretty, pretty, pretty good!
Peter Lynch’s Magellan returned 29% from 1977-1990, double the 15% for SP500.
However, the average investor in Magellan returned only 7% while the fund returned 29%. This is frequently cited by Morningstar and was discussed by Lynch himself in his later years.
1. Late Arrivals: The fund was private for the first four years (1977–1981) when Lynch had his most explosive gains (e.g., up 70% in 1980). By the time the public piled in, the fund had grown so large that it was harder to maintain that pace.
2. Panic Selling: During Lynch's rare "bad" years (like 1984, where he returned 2% vs. the S&P's 6%), investors saw the lag, assumed he "lost his touch," and pulled their money out—only to miss the recovery.
Morningstar is going to use my panic selling in their next mind the gap study.
From M* bio under FCNTX, the new comanagers have industry experience, but have overlapped with Danoff only since 04/2025.
Asher Anolic is co-manager of the VIP Growth Portfolio, which he has managed since July 2017. He also manages other funds. Since joining Fidelity Investments in 2008, Mr. Anolic has worked as a research analyst and portfolio manager. Prior to joining Fidelity Investments in 2008, Mr. Anolic worked for Bear Stearns as a research analyst.
Jason Weiner is co-manager of the fund, which he has managed since November 2006. He also manages Fidelity funds. Since joining Fidelity Investments in 1991, Mr. Weiner has worked as a research analyst and portfolio manager (other than a 6-month leave of absence in 2018).
@equalizer, Peter Lynch's original plan was to retire in 1987, but the crash of 1987 intervened, FMAGX had large redemptions, and Lynch didn't want to leave the fund with that situation. So, he delayed his early retirement to 1990 and fund AUM had stabilized by that time.
My parents held FCNTX from 1991 until my dad passed in 2022. (they held Magellan through the 1970’s and 1980’s too). Some years were better than others but my mom insists that both FCNTX and Magellan were the best investments they ever made. My mom sold most of FCNTX in 2022 because it was “too racy” for her in this time of life (plus it went down a fair amount that year) but still owns a few shares. She’s ecstatic with the wealth it created (and Magellan too).
"M* reports that the fund's no-load share class gained 14.2% annualized during his tenure (through 01/26/2026)."
Not that it matters with such a spectacular record, but that figure doesn't take into account the 3% sales charge that was in effect at the time. That is, no investor got quite that rate of return, even by holding through the entire period. Though it was close (3% load amortized over decades is a pittance.)
In the 1980s and '90s Fidelity was a "low load" family, where most of its growth funds charged 3% on purchase (aside from its Destiny plans) and its growth and income funds charged 2% on purchase + 1% on redemption. The load on Contrafund was dropped on June 23, 2003.
"Jason Weiner is co-manager of the fund, which he has managed since November 2006. He also manages Fidelity funds. "
Is AI now writing M*'s manager data? This reads like a description of some other (non-Fidelity) fund Weiner manages. Otherwise, he'd also manage other Fidelity funds. Fidelity gives the identical bio on other funds saying that he's managed those funds also since 2006. See, e.g. the people page for FDCAX.
Here's a better description of the remaining fund managers, provided by Fidelity:
For years, Will has been working alongside Jason, Asher, and the entire Equity division, sharing how he manages the Contrafund franchise, his investment philosophy and approach, and best practices and key learnings over different market cycles.
Jason and Asher have a long history of discussing stocks and collaborating with Will and the broader team. Will has worked with Jason for 34 years and with Asher for 17 years. Jason served as assistant portfolio manager with Will on Contrafund from 1994 to 1996. Jason and Asher have been serving as co-portfolio managers for more than seven years on Fidelity Advisor Equity Growth Fund and Fidelity Growth Discovery Fund. Additionally, they have co-managed Fidelity Capital Appreciation Fund together for over six years. This partnership provides strong continuity across the Contrafund strategies and the team. Their investment philosophy is highly aligned to Will’s approach.
Comments
M* reports that the fund's no-load share class gained 14.2% annualized during his tenure (through 01/26/2026).
The S&P 500 and the Russell 1000 Growth Index gained 11.3% and 11.8% respectively during the same period.
Contrafund's total return exceeded that of nearly all surviving large-cap funds.
Mr. Danoff has done pretty, pretty, pretty good!
However, the average investor in Magellan returned only 7% while the fund returned 29%. This is frequently cited by Morningstar and was discussed by Lynch himself in his later years.
https://ritholtz.com/2023/08/mind-the-gap/
Two reasons for big gap;
1. Late Arrivals: The fund was private for the first four years (1977–1981) when Lynch had his most explosive gains (e.g., up 70% in 1980). By the time the public piled in, the fund had grown so large that it was harder to maintain that pace.
2. Panic Selling: During Lynch's rare "bad" years (like 1984, where he returned 2% vs. the S&P's 6%), investors saw the lag, assumed he "lost his touch," and pulled their money out—only to miss the recovery.
Morningstar is going to use my panic selling in their next mind the gap study.
Asher Anolic is co-manager of the VIP Growth Portfolio, which he has managed since July 2017. He also manages other funds. Since joining Fidelity Investments in 2008, Mr. Anolic has worked as a research analyst and portfolio manager. Prior to joining Fidelity Investments in 2008, Mr. Anolic worked for Bear Stearns as a research analyst.
Jason Weiner is co-manager of the fund, which he has managed since November 2006. He also manages Fidelity funds. Since joining Fidelity Investments in 1991, Mr. Weiner has worked as a research analyst and portfolio manager (other than a 6-month leave of absence in 2018).
Not that it matters with such a spectacular record, but that figure doesn't take into account the 3% sales charge that was in effect at the time. That is, no investor got quite that rate of return, even by holding through the entire period. Though it was close (3% load amortized over decades is a pittance.)
In the 1980s and '90s Fidelity was a "low load" family, where most of its growth funds charged 3% on purchase (aside from its Destiny plans) and its growth and income funds charged 2% on purchase + 1% on redemption. The load on Contrafund was dropped on June 23, 2003.
"Jason Weiner is co-manager of the fund, which he has managed since November 2006. He also manages Fidelity funds. "
Is AI now writing M*'s manager data? This reads like a description of some other (non-Fidelity) fund Weiner manages. Otherwise, he'd also manage other Fidelity funds. Fidelity gives the identical bio on other funds saying that he's managed those funds also since 2006. See, e.g. the people page for FDCAX.
Here's a better description of the remaining fund managers, provided by Fidelity: https://etf.wi.gov/boards/deferredcompensation/2025/06/05/dc10d5/direct