There have been good women fund managers since even before I started at Morningstar in the ‘90s. Today, most good funds have multiple managers, so it may be a little less obvious where the women managers are. Today, I’ll highlight three Gold-rated funds with women managers. Two are led by well-known industry veterans, Dana Emery and Mary Ellen Stanek. Let’s dive into each fund.
3 Top-Rated Funds Run by Women Managers
1. Dodge & Cox Income I DODIX
2. American Funds International Growth & Income IGAAX
3. Baird Aggregate Bond Institutional BAGIX
First, Dodge & Cox Income is true standout. The core-plus bond fund is best known for its corporate bond sleeve but also has government and mortgage bonds as well. Dana Emery is the fund chairman, but the fund also counts Director of Fixed Income Lucy Johns among the eight managers guiding this team. It’s an extraordinary fund that has produced top-quartile returns over the trailing three-, five-, 10-, and 15-year periods.
American Funds International Growth & Income is a dividend fund that is very much in Capital Group’s wheelhouse. Patrice Collette, Lisa Thompson, and Barbara Burtin are three of the seven portfolio managers guiding this fund. Each manager builds their portfolio independently of the others, and the fund is the combined effort of all those stock picks. From the fund’s 2008 inception, it leads its category benchmark with returns of 6.2% annualized to 4.8% annualized for the benchmark.
Baird Aggregate Bond manager Mary Ellen Stanek won our 2022 Outstanding Portfolio Manager award. Along with co-CIO Warren Pierson, Stanek guides the 10-person management team at this fund. Baird runs a conservative strategy that only takes modest bets versus the benchmark. The fund has been a consistent performer over the long haul and is one of the more reliable funds around.
Watch 3 Great Funds for an IRA for 2024 for more from Russ Kinnel.
The author or authors do not own shares in any securities mentioned in this article.
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