Opinions expressed by BIZ Experiences contributors are their own.
This year's markets have been sloppy, which makes callingthe good funds nearly impossible. Instead of looking for hot funds,consider one with a great long-term track record.
The Smith Barney Aggressive Growth Fund is a workhorse fundthat's been managed by the same guy, Richard Freeman, since itsinception in 1983. It has a five-star Morningstar rating and atypically low portfolio turnover rate, making it extra appealingwhen holding it outside of a qualified retirement account.
Freeman likes to invest in companies when they're small andhold on to them as they grow into mid- and large caps. As of April30, about 35 percent of the portfolio was made up of large-capcompanies purchased when they were small or midsized companies.
With the fund's weightings heavy into health care andtechnology, its performance has gotten beat up as of late April-butthen again, what funds investing heavily in those sectorshaven't? If you're a fan of multicap investing and likegreat portfolio managers who've been at the helm for a while,this fund is worth a close look.
Smith Barney Aggressive Growth Fund(SHRAX)
Performance: 31% 3-year averageannual return, 27.4% 5-year average
annual return
Web site:www.salomonsmithbarney.com/mutualfunds
Author and syndicated columnist Dian Vujovich publishesfund-investing site www.fundfreebies.com.
