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Smarter Money
Smarter Money: A Dreamboat of a Tech Fund
By James J. Cramer
8/18/00 9:53 AM ET
URL: thestreet.com
Yes, that's really the only word for the Red Oak mutual fund, part of the Oak Associates family -- one of the best places to send your money if you don't have the time or the inclination to manage it yourself.
I can't hide my enthusiasm for these folks, in part because, well, we traffic in the same stocks. Through a quick check of their terrific and easy-to-use Web site (www.oakassociates.com -- no brain surgery here!) you can find out what they are up to currently. They disclose their entire portfolio, all 23 stocks, with percentages owned.
And what a portfolio it is! If I didn't know any better I would think that Matt "Fast Growth" Jacobs is moonlighting there. Hefty positions in Newport (NEWP:Nasdaq), Broadcom(BRCM:Nasdaq), Juniper (JNPR:Nasdaq), Brocade(BRCD:Nasdaq), Ciena (CIEN:Nasdaq). JDS Uniphase (JDSU:Nasdaq) and Cisco (CSCO:Nasdaq) let you know up front that these managers are picking the hottest in fiber, optical, switching and telcom. Further down, they have Applied Materials(AMAT:Nasdaq), PMC Sierra (PMCS:Nasdaq), EMC (EMC:NYSE) and Sun Micro (SUNW:Nasdaq), all stocks that I think are poised to outperform.
A powerful line-up. This is definitely the most pure-play tech fund I have ever seen. Not a dog in the kennel.
Of course all of the usual caveats apply. The median price-to-earnings ratio for the fund is pure nosebleed at 94 times earnings. The correlation to the jazziest part of the Nazzdogs is, to put it mildly, extreme.
But it is early enough in the life cycle of this fund that it is not too big to maneuver. Size matters. At $1.34 billion, according to the site, Red Oak is like a sleek destroyer winding its way amid giant, stodgy fund battleships.
If you are looking for a new fund for the ultra long-term, and you are not going to get spooked every time the Nasdaq drops 10% -- and believe me, these guys will be clubbed for more than that in such a selloff -- check Red Oak out. Before it gets too big and the party is spoiled. |
