Jean-Marie Eveillard Explains Why He Likes Tyco and Gold

Jean-Marie Eveillard First Eagle Funds

There aren't many fund managers who can be described as strict Graham-Buffett adherents, who like Tyco(TYC Quote), and who think we are in the early stages of a bull market for gold. But then, there aren't many fund managers like Jean-Marie Eveillard.

It's a Promethean task for most skippers to place a fund atop its peers in terms of performance. Eveillard -- the affable, quotable Frenchman who frequents Louis Rukeyser's show -- has three separate funds topping three separate categories. The (FESGX Quote)First Eagle Global fund, which he has helmed since 1979, has a 8.11% average annual return over five years and 10.61% over 10 years -- putting the fund in the top 1% of all globe-trotting offerings, according to Morningstar.

Eveillard's (SGGDX Quote)First Eagle Gold, which he has run since its 1993 inception, has notched similarly impressive returns: 48.2% over one year, 34.1% average annualized over three years and 15.09% over five years -- all in the top 1%. The (FESOX Quote)First Eagle Overseas fund [note: Global funds include U.S., overseas funds include only foreign holdings] has one-year and three-year returns (5.06% and 7.34%, respectively) atop the charts as well -- the five-year average annual return of 9.51% is good for top 2%. As if his dance card wasn't full enough, he has racked up top decile returns at the (FEVCX Quote)First Eagle U.S. Value fund since its 2000 inception. ...