Quick Take: Investors lost faith in the FMI Common Stock Fund (FMIMX) in the late 1990s when its style of buying undervalued stocks was out of favor, says portfolio manager Patrick English. "A lot of people were questioning our abilities," he says. "But we didn't change. We kept doing what we said we'd do, and so we went from being dumb to being smart overnight."
English's facetious remarks aside, the fund's performance has perked up over the last two-and-a-half years as value stocks have become fashionable.
After lagging the Standard & Poor's 500 Index with a total return of 6.5% in 1999, FMI Common Stock gained 19.1% in 2000 and 18.6% in 2001, topping the index both years. The $87-million fund had gained 6.2% this year through May, while the average small-cap value fund was up 6.6%. For the five-year period ended in May, the fund returned 12.5% annualized, versus 10.9% for its peers.
The Full Interview:
Technology stocks typically don't take up much room in the FMI Common Stock fund, which focuses on inexpensive fare. They can be pricey.
But the sector has been battered down over the last two years, so "that's where value is right now," says Patrick English, who helps manage the portfolio.
While the fund still has only about 8% of its assets in tech, two of English's most recent investments are software makers: Autodesk, Inc (ADSK) and Parametric Technology (PMTC), which make programs that are used for designing products.
Both have large, loyal customer bases, says English, who prizes that quality in the companies he buys. They also have "lots of cash, and no debt," he says. And both are poised to benefit if businesses start spending more on information technology, he says, adding that "eventually, companies will begin loosening their purse strings."
So far this year, English hasn't made much money on Autodesk, and Parametric has been a loser, but he's optimistic about the future for the stocks, which he began buying about six months ago. His average cost in Autodesk is about $13 per share; it closed today at $13.33. His Parametric shares cost about $5 on average; they closed at $3.80 this afternoon.
