Baron Large-Cap Growth Strategy

Portfolio Management

AlexUmansky
Alex Umansky

Fund Manager since 2011

Objective & Strategy

The investment goal of Baron Large-Cap Growth Strategy is capital appreciation.

Baron Large-Cap Growth Strategy is diversified and expects to invest in about 40 to 50 stocks of mainly large-sized U.S. growth companies over $5 billion market capitalization and with a minimum expected return of 100% over a five-year period. Invests in classic growth companies, companies in transition ignored by the market and companies in cyclical industries with high demand.

Strategy Description

Baron Large-Cap Growth Strategy invests primarily in large growth companies.

      

         

Resources

Latest Fact Sheet

Fact Sheet

Performance Summary as of March 31, 2012

  Annualized Returns Since Inception
9/30/04
Gross/
Net
YTD 1 YR 3 YR 5 YR 10 YR Annual-
ized
Cumu-
lative
Gross 23.06% 17.61% 25.97% 3.57% N/A 6.92% 65.13%
Net 22.86% 17.01% 25.32% 2.87% N/A 5.94% 54.11%
Compounded Performance Chart

See Performance Details

Top Ten Holdings as of April 30, 2012

Holding Sector Percentage
Apple, Inc. Information Technology 7.8%
Amazon.com, Inc. Consumer Discretionary 5.6%
Google, Inc. Information Technology 4.4%
Wynn Resorts Ltd. Consumer Discretionary 3.5%
Monsanto Co. Materials 3.5%
Visa, Inc. Information Technology 3.4%
priceline.com, Inc. Consumer Discretionary 3.3%
Baidu, Inc. Information Technology 3.2%
YUM! Brands, Inc. Consumer Discretionary 3.1%
Equinix, Inc. Information Technology 3.1%
Total 40.9%

Performance Based Characteristics as of December 31, 2011

  Baron Large-Cap Growth Strategy S&P 500 Index
Characteristics 5 years Since Inception 5 Years Since Inception
Standard Deviation (%) 19.96 17.51 18.73 16.09
Sharpe Ratio -0.09 0.12 -0.09 0.11
Alpha (%) 0.05 0.35 0.00 0.00
Beta 1.03 1.04 1.00 1.00
R-Squared (%) 92.96 91.38 100.00 100.00
Tracking Error (%) 5.32 5.18 0.00 0.00
Information Ratio -0.02 0.07 0.00 0.00
Upside Capture (%) 99.48 102.76 100.00 100.00
Downside Capture (%) 99.99 101.52 100.00 100.00

Strategy Facts

Inception Date September 30, 2004
Total Strategy Assets $78 million
Risk/Reward Comparison
Risk Reward Graph

For strategy reporting purposes, the Firm is defined as all accounts managed by Baron Capital Management, Inc. ("BCM") and BAMCO, Inc. ("BAMCO"), registered investment advisers wholly owned by Baron Capital Group, Inc. As of 9/30/2011, total Firm assets under management are approximately $15.0 billion. The strategy is a time-weighted, total return composite of all large-cap accounts greater than $1 million using our standard investment process. Since 2010, accounts in the strategy are market-value weighted and are included on the first day of the month following one full month under management. Prior to 2010, accounts were included on the first day of the quarter after one full quarter.  Gross performance figures do not reflect the deduction of investment advisory fees. Actual client returns will be reduced by the advisory fees and any other expenses incurred in the management of the investment advisory account. A full description of investment advisory fees is supplied in our Form ADV Part II. Valuations and returns are computed and stated in U.S. dollars. Performance figures reflect the reinvestment of dividends and other earnings. The strategy is currently composed of one mutual fund and one sub-advised account managed by BAMCO and separately managed accounts managed by BCM.

BAMCO and BCM claim compliance with the Global Investment Performance Standards ("GIPS"), verified through December 31, 2009. To receive a complete list and description of the Firm’s strategies or a GIPS compliant presentation please contact us at 1-800-99BARON.

Performance data quoted represents past performance. Current performance may be lower or higher than the performance data quoted. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

The performance of accounts in the strategy may be materially different at any given time. Differences that may affect investment performance include cash flows, inception dates, and historical prices. Positions may not be the same or may be traded at different times. In addition, accounts in the strategy may be pursuing similar investment strategies, but may have different investment restrictions.

Specific risks associated with large cap equities include that they are subject to price fluctuations in the stock market.

The Risk/Return Comparison plots the since inception return of the Strategy against the Strategy's Standard Deviation for the same time period. Source: FactSet SPAR.

Sector and sub-industry weights, top ten holdings and portfolio characteristics are based on a representative account. Such data may vary for each client in the strategy due to asset size, market conditions, client guidelines and diversity of portfolio holdings. The representative account is the account in the strategy that we believe most closely reflects the current portfolio management style for this strategy. Representative account data is supplemental information.

Industry sector or sub-industry group levels are provided from the Global Industry Classification Standard (“GICS”), developed and exclusively owned by MSCI, Inc. (“MSCI”) and Standard & Poor’s Financial Services LLC (“S&P”), unless otherwise stated that they have been reclassified or classified by the Adviser. All GICS data is provided “as is” with no warranties.

Source: FactSet SPAR. Based on the gross performance results of the strategy.

Definitions: The indexes are unmanaged. The Russell 1000 Growth Index measures the performance of large growth companies, and the S&P 500 Index of large companies. The Russell 1000 Growth Index, the S&P 500 Index and the strategy are with dividends, which positively impact the performance results. Standard Deviation: measures the degree to which the strategy’s performance has varied from its average performance over a particular time period. The greater the standard deviation, the greater the strategy’s volatility (risk). Sharpe Ratio: is a risk-adjusted performance statistic that measures reward per unit of risk. The higher the Sharpe ratio, the better the strategy’s risk adjusted performance. Alpha: measures the difference between the strategy’s actual returns and its expected performance, given its level of risk as measured by beta. Beta: measures the strategy’s sensitivity to market movements. The beta of the market (S&P 500 Index) is 1.00 by definition. R-Squared: measures how closely the strategy’s performance correlates to the performance of the benchmark index (S&P 500 Index), and thus is a measurement of what portion of its performance can be explained by the performance of the index. Values for R-Squared range from 0 to 100, where 0 indicates no correlation and 100 indicates perfect correlation. Tracking Error: measures how closely the strategy’s return follows the benchmark index returns (S&P 500 Index). It is calculated as the annualized standard deviation of the difference between the strategy and the index returns. Information Ratio: measures the excess return of the strategy divided by the amount of risk the strategy takes relative to the benchmark index (S&P 500 Index). The higher the information ratio, the higher the excess return expected of the strategy, given the amount of risk involved. Upside Capture %: explains how well the strategy performs in time periods where the benchmark’s returns (S&P 500 Index) are greater than zero. Downside Capture %: explains how well the strategy performs in time periods where the benchmark’s returns (S&P 500 Index) are less than zero.