Ken Heebner: Best Fund Manager Alive?

Other major holdings of CGMFX include America Movile ADR (AMX), Petroleo Brasileiro S/A ADR (Petrobras) (PBR) and Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan (POT).

Interestingly, U.S. Steel, Petrobras, Freeport McMoRan and Potash of Saskatchewan are also among the top holdings of another fund that can legitimately reside in the same universe as CGMFX. The Quaker Strategic Growth Fund (QUAGX) placed first among diversified equity funds over the past 10 years in risk-adjusted performance, as measured by its Sharpe Ratio. CGMFX ended in 12th by the Sharpe measure for that period.

Among QUAGX's other major holdings are resource plays Schlumberger (SLB) and BHP Billiton ADR (BHP).

Investors attracted to CGMFX, or any of the CGM funds, are -- as with all funds -- cautioned not to ignore the warnings on its filings that "past performance is not necessarily indicative of future results." Also, Heebner's remarkable performance at CGMFX started in the year 2000, meaning his tenure as a superstar manager is not yet nine years old.

While successful fund managers are susceptible to slumps at any time, some hot streaks have lasted well past the decade mark. Bill Miller's remarkable record at the Legg Mason Value Trust (LMVTX) of annually besting the S&P 500's performance lasted for 14 seasons.

Over a similar number of years, Peter Lynch grew the Fidelity Magellan Fund (FMAGX) from $18 million in assets in 1977 to $14 billion when he left the helm in 1990. Sir John Templeton, who died earlier this month, achieved lucrative gains in global investments for decades beginning in the mid 1950s.

So while there is always the chance that Heebner's fame might prove ephemeral, the possibility remains that his portfolio management skill might also steer the CGM funds to even further greatness.

CGM FOCUS FUND: A REMARKABLE RECORD
PERIOD	CGM FOCUS FUND TOTAL RET'N (%) *	CGM FOCUS'S RANKING & NO. OF FUNDS RANKED	"BEST OF THE REST" - NAME, TICKER & TheStreet.com RATINGS GRADE OF HIGHEST RANKING FUND OTHER THAN CGM FOCUS FUND	"BEST OF THE REST'S" RANKING	"BEST OF THE REST'S" TOTAL RET'N (%) *
Last 3 Mos.	27.01	1 / 3344	Eaton Vance Tax Mgd SmCap Gr A (ETMGX) A+	2	19.28
Yr. to Date	17.09	2 / 3271	Leuthold Grizzly Short Fund (GRZZX) B	1	29.82
Last 12 Mos.	70.87	1 / 3158	Leuthold Grizzly Short Fund (GRZZX) B	2	46.30
Last 3 Years	38.74	1 / 2603	Ivy Fund-Asset Strategy A (WASAX) A+	2	20.13
Last 5 Years	35.41	1 / 2163	Pacific Advisors Small Cap A (PASMX) B+	2	24.96
Last 10 Years	26.34	1 / 1380	Turner Emerging Growth Fund (TMCGX) B	2	24.18
Cal. 2007	79.92	1 / 3079	American Century Leg Foc Lg Cp Inv (ACFOX) U	2	46.81
Cal. 2006	14.95	959 / 2779	Pacific Advisors Small Cap A (PASMX) B+	1	35.05
Cal. 2005	25.32	2 / 2500	Hennessy Focus 30 Fund (HFTFX) C+	1	32.74
Cal. 2004	12.33	1028 / 2291	Bruce Fund (BRUFX) C	1	56.26
Cal. 2003	66.46	33 / 2110	Apex Mid-Cap Growth Fund (BMCGX) D+	1	165.28
Cal. 2002	-17.79	856 / 1969	Prudent Bear Fd (BEARX) A+	1	62.87
Cal. 2001	47.65	2 / 1803	Wasatch Micro Cap Fund (WMICX) E-	1	49.99
Cal. 2000	53.93	2 / 1616	Robeco Boston Ptrs Lg/Sh Equit Inv (BPLEX) C-	1	59.87
Cal. 1999	8.45	1080 / 1474	Van Wagoner Emerging Growth Fund (VWEGX) E-	1	291.15
Cal. 1998	3.52	1038 / 1311	Berkshire Focus Fund (BFOCX) C	1	103.96
"RISK-ADJUSTED" INVESTMENT RETURNS (SHARPE RATIOS)
Last 12 Mos.	2.54	1 / 3158	Caldwell & Orkin Mkt Opportunity (COAGX) A+	2	2.19
Last 3 Years	1.51	3 / 2603	Ivy Fund-Asset Strategy A (WASAX) A+	1	1.79
Last 5 Years	1.48	1 / 2163	Ivy Fund-Asset Strategy A (WASAX) A+	2	1.48
Last 10 Years	0.74	12 / 1380	Quaker Strategic Growth A (QUAGX) A	1	0.95
* Annualized returns for periods more than a year. Source: TheStreet.com Ratings - Data as of 6/30/2007. For an explanation of our ratings, click here.

Richard Widows is a senior financial analyst for TheStreet.com Ratings. Prior to joining TheStreet.com, Widows was senior product manager for quantitative analytics at Thomson Financial. After receiving an M.B.A. from Santa Clara University in California, his career included development of investment information systems at data firms, including the Lipper division of Reuters. His international experience includes assignments in the U.K. and East Asia.

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