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Watch These Fund-Manager Changes

Sam Patel

Investment opportunities may abound, particularly at funds that have not been performing very well and the decision has been made to replace the manager.

Making a management change doesn't guarantee success, but it can help -- and it may be a catalyst of improved performance ahead.

I have separated the tables below into two parts, the first showing manager changes at funds with very good performance and ratings and the second showing funds with less than stellar performance and ratings.

All manager changes occurred on Jan. 1., except that of Warren Tennant at Aim Technology Fund(ITYAX - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr), which took place on Feb. 4, according to our data.

The funds in the first set of tables below all have excellent track records prior to the arrival of the new manager. The new managers have a lot to live up to in such difficult market periods as this, and investors who are already in these funds should not take the past success for granted.

Fund Statistics:

Manager Changes for Above Funds:

The most notable aspect of the manager changes is that Ronald Sachs takes over at the Janus Adviser(JDCAX - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr) and Janus Aspen(JACAX - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr) funds from longtime stalwart Scott Schoelzel.

There seems to be higher turnover of managers at the Fidelity funds, with Tobias Welo taking over from Duffy Fisher, who was manager of the two Fidelity Materials funds -- FMFAX(FMFAX - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr) and FSDPX(FSDPX - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr) -- for less than a year. Mathew Schuldt took over responsibilities at Duffy Fisher's other fund, Fidelity Select Chemicals(FSCHX - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr).

Despite the lack of manager stability, these funds have continued to return well for both one and three years, suggesting that performance has more to do with the sectors rather than any difference in manager talent.

Some of the manager changes do look like they have may have occurred due to poor performance, though. The funds below exhibit low three-year returns and very poor one-year returns. There may be a chance that these funds experience an improvement with the new managers in place, but be cautious in the current market about expecting too much from any fund vehicle.

Fund Statistics:

Manager Changes for Above Funds:

Mark Carhart takes over the reins at the Goldman Sachs Structured Tax Managed Equity(GCTAX - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr) after a seven-year stint by Donald J. Mulvihill. The other three funds have lacked stability in manager roles, with the new managers replacing their previous counterparts after short tenures.