Kiplinger\'s Personal Finance 03.2020

26 KIPLINGER’S PERSONAL FINANCE^ 03/2020

INVESTING

1. T. Rowe Price New Horizons* 18.8%


2. Primecap Odyssey Aggressive Growth* 16.9


3. Baron Partners Retail 16.1


4. Jackson Square SMID-Cap Growth Inv 16.0


5. Delaware Smid Cap Growth A 15.9


6. Virtus KAR Small-Cap Core A* 15.8


7. Principal MidCap A* 15.8


8. Eventide Gilead N 15.8


9. Value Line Mid Cap Focused 15.3


10. Janus Henderson Enterprise T* 15.3
    CATEGORY AVERAGE 11.9%

10 YEARS

1. Virtus KAR Small-Cap Growth A* 18.7%


2. Wasatch Ultra Growth 16.3


3. AB Small Cap Growth A 16.1


4. Federated Kaufmann Small Cap A 16.1


5. Brown Capital Mgmt Small Co Inv* 15.6


6. Buffalo Emerging Opportunities 15.4


7. Victory RS Small Cap Equity A* 15.4


8. Wasatch Micro Cap 15.3


9. JPMorgan Small Cap Growth A 15.3


10. Artisan Small Cap Inv* 15.3
    CATEGORY AVERAGE 11.6%

10 YEARS

1. Virtus KAR Small-Cap Core A* 16.8%


2. Virtus KAR Mid-Cap Growth A 16.7


3. T. Rowe Price New Horizons* 16.2


4. BlackRock Mid-Cap Growth Equity Inv A 15.4


5. ClearBridge Select A 15.1


6. Conestoga SMid Cap Inv 14.5


7. Janus Henderson Enterprise T* 14.3


8. Value Line Mid Cap Focused 14.2


9. DF Dent Midcap Growth Inv 14.0


10. Federated Kaufmann A 14.0
    CATEGORY AVERAGE 8.6%

5 YEARS

1. Virtus KAR Small-Cap Growth A* 21.2%


2. Wasatch Ultra Growth 17.4


3. Federated Kaufmann Small Cap A 17.0


4. Wasatch Micro Cap 16.2


5. Columbia Small Cap Growth I A 15.5


6. Alger Small Cap Focus A* 15.0


7. Conestoga Small Cap Inv* 14.8


8. Fidelity Small Cap Growth* 14.5


9. Nationwide Small Company Growth A* 14.5


10. Needham Small Cap Growth Retail 14.4
    CATEGORY AVERAGE 7.9%

5 YEARS

Mid-cap shares lost their mojo in 2018, but

in 2019, they were hot. The S&P MidCap 400

index posted a 26.2% gain in 2019. DF Dent

Midcap Growth is a member of the Kiplinger

25, our favorite no-load funds. The fund’s

managers favor growing businesses that gen-

erate cash, dominate their industry and have

smart, shareholder-focused executives at

the top. Baron Partners Retail ranks well over

the past decade and the past year. Its hefty

2.0% expense ratio is a turnoff, and you need

an iron stomach to endure the ride. But man-

ager Ron Baron has delivered fat returns

with spicy investments such as Tesla. The

manager at Janus Henderson Contrarian is

relatively new, but we like what we see so far.

Expenses are a below-average 0.74%, too.

Small stocks fared better this year, but it

wasn’t enough to beat the S&P 500. Growth-

focused funds beat value-oriented offerings

for the third year running. Not one small-

value fund made the winners lists. Wasatch

Micro Cap, which focuses on firms with less

than $1 billion in market value, beat the

Russell 2000 index over the past one, three,

five and 10 years. But its 1.65% annual ex-

pense ratio is pricey. Wasatch Ultra Growth

invests in companies averaging about $2.5

billion in market value and has an even better

10-year record. Tech and health care shares

dominate both Wasatch funds. At Needham

Small Cap Growth, the one- and five-year re-

cords shine, but its long-term record is below

average. We’re eyeing Davenport Small Cap

Focus, which holds just 31 stocks. The five-

year-old fund is off to a fantastic start.

MIDSIZE-COMPANY

STOCK FUNDS

Mid caps got their mojo back.

SMALL-COMPANY

STOCK FUNDS

Growth dominated—again.

1. Baron Partners Retail 45.0%


2. Tocqueville Opportunity 44.8


3. Brown Capital Management Mid Co Inv 44.2


4. Virtus KAR Mid-Cap Growth A 44.0


5. Shelton Green Alpha 43.7


6. Janus Henderson Contrarian T 43.0


7. Transamerica Mid Cap Growth A 42.8


8. Principal MidCap A* 42.5


9. Needham Growth Retail 42.3


10. Touchstone Mid Cap Growth A 42.1
    CATEGORY AVERAGE 29.7%

1 YEAR

1. Needham Small Cap Growth Retail 54.4%


2. Victory Munder Small Cap Growth A 44.1


3. Needham Aggressive Growth Retail 43.9


4. Jacob Micro Cap Growth Inv 42.5


5. Wasatch Micro Cap 42.2


6. Harbor Small Cap Growth Inv 41.8


7. Buffalo Small Cap 41.0


8. Davenport Small Cap Focus 40.9


9. MFS New Discovery A 40.8


10. Columbia Small Cap Growth I A 40.6
    CATEGORY AVERAGE 25.3%

1 YEAR

1. Morgan Stanley Inst Discovery A 29.4%


2. Virtus KAR Mid-Cap Growth A 27.4


3. ClearBridge Select A 26.7


4. T. Rowe Price New Horizons* 23.5


5. BlackRock Mid-Cap Growth Equity Inv A 23.2


6. Baron Partners Retail 23.2


7. Virtus KAR Small-Cap Core A* 22.6


8. Alger Weatherbie Specialized Growth A 22.5


9. DF Dent Midcap Growth Inv 22.4


10. Delaware Smid Cap Growth A 22.3
    CATEGORY AVERAGE 11.8%

3 YEARS

1. Virtus KAR Small-Cap Growth A* 27.6%


2. Jacob Micro Cap Growth Inv 26.5


3. Wasatch Ultra Growth 26.2


4. Wasatch Micro Cap 25.7


5. Federated Kaufmann Small Cap A 25.4


6. JPMorgan Small Cap Growth A 22.6


7. Alger Small Cap Focus A* 22.2


8. Neuberger Berman Small Cap Growth Inv* 22.1


9. Artisan Small Cap Inv* 22.0


10. AB Small Cap Growth A 21.9
    CATEGORY AVERAGE 8.9%

3 YEARS

Returns are annualized through December 31, 2019. *Closed to new investors. SOURCE: © 2020 Morningstar Inc.

2019 MUTUAL FUND WINNERS