Weitz Research Fund Available To Retail Investors

Weitz Funds today announced that the Weitz Research Fund (WRESX) is now available to retail investors. The Fund, a focused, multi-cap equity long-only fund had operated as a private partnership since April 2005. The Fund is managed by Weitz equity analysts Jonathan Baker, Barton Hooper, David Perkins, and Andrew Weitz, and consists of four separately managed sleeves with the same multi-cap equity strategy.

Each analyst is assigned a portion, or "sleeve," of the portfolio’s assets. The four managers have sole discretion for the investment decisions within their individual sleeves, subject to several broad parameters which ensure conviction, encourage collaboration and drive accountability. The firm’s Director of Research, Brad Hinton, helps set these parameters and provides oversight. For example, the sleeve managers may invest in fully-researched companies that any team member has presented to the investment group. This approach encourages idea sharing, and fosters comprehensive vetting and analysis.

"We're delighted to be offering Weitz Research Fund to the broad investing public," said Wally Weitz, President of Weitz Funds. "This fund is a concentrated portfolio of our analyst team's highest-conviction ideas. Our analysts have contributed greatly to our funds' strong performance over the years, and this format allows them to do what they do best--pick great stocks."

Because of the unique portfolio management structure, the Fund has several characteristics that further distinguish it from Weitz's other equity funds. For example, the Fund is quite concentrated, with each sleeve typically holding between eight and sixteen stocks at any time. Because of overlap between the sleeves, the Fund will typically own 25 to 35 stocks in total.

The ten largest positions will often represent as much as 50% to 65% of net assets, with the Fund’s largest holding often representing 8% to 12% of net assets. For a position to reach this size, multiple co-managers would have to own the same stock in their individual sleeves.

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