Morningstar announced its 2012 U.S. Fund Manager of the Year award winners on Thursday after releasing a slow tease of nominees prior to the Christmas holiday. According to the Chicago-based research firm, the awards acknowledge managers who "not only delivered impressive performance in 2012, but also excellent long-term risk-adjusted returns, and who have been good stewards of fund shareholders' capital."
Morningstar introduced new awards this year for two types of strategies—allocation and alternatives—in addition to domestic stock, international stock and fixed income.
The 2012 Fund Manager of the Year award winners are:
Domestic-Stock Fund Manager of the Year
Bill Frels and Mark Henneman, Mairs & Power Growth (MPGFX)
In its announcement, Morningstar writes that that Mairs & Power Growth, Bill Frels and Mark Henneman have produced one of the best long-term records of any large-blend fund. Since Frels became co-manager in 1999, the firm notes, the fund has beaten all but one of its large-blend category peers and trounced the S&P 500 with an 8.2% annualized gain through 2012.
International-Stock Fund Manager of the Year
Rajiv Jain has managed Virtus Foreign Opportunities since 2002, and Virtus Emerging Markets Opportunities since 2006. He follows "a high-conviction approach regardless of market trends and is willing to hold portfolios that look very different than the benchmark." The strategy has served him well, according to Morningstar. His funds have landed in the top decile of performance for most periods under his management.
