William Danoff
{{Short description|American businessman}}
{{Distinguish|Bill Danoff}}
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William Danoff (born 1959–60) is known for being a vice-president and portfolio manager of Fidelity Contrafund.{{cite web|url=http://www.moneymasters.com/default.aspx?page=DanoffWilliam|title=William Danoff — The Lone Wolf|year=2008|publisher=Retirement Corporation of America|accessdate=2009-07-19}} For a time, the Contrafund was one of the largest managed stock or bond mutual funds run by one person.{{Cite news|url=https://blogs.wsj.com/moneybeat/2016/10/21/the-108-billion-man-who-has-beaten-the-market/|title=The $108 Billion Man Who Has Beaten the Market|last=Zweig|first=Jason|newspaper=WSJ|access-date=2016-10-23}}
Education and early career
Danoff received a degree in history from Harvard in 1982 and an MBA from Wharton in 1986.{{Cite web |title=William Danoff |url=https://hillel.harvard.edu/people/william-danoff |access-date=2024-07-25 |website=Harvard Hillel |language=en}} First joining Fidelity as an analyst in 1986,{{Cite news|last=Randall|first=David|date=2015-09-14|title=Fidelity's Danoff is face of key man risk as he hits 25-year mark|language=en|work=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-contrafund-danoff-idUSKCN0RE0DE20150914|access-date=2021-05-07}} Danoff trained under Peter Lynch, who managed Fidelity's Magellan Fund in the 1970s.
Fidelity Contrafund
William Danoff has been a manager of Fidelity Investments's flagship mutual fund Fidelity Contrafund since 1990. He was the sole manager of the fund from 1990 until 2025, when Jason Weiner and Asher Anolic were named as co-managers of the fund along with Danoff.{{cite web |last1=Gyftopoulou |first1=Loukia |title=Contrafund's $145 Billion Man Gets Help After 34-Year Solo Run |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-04-11/contrafund-s-145-billion-man-gets-help-after-34-year-solo-run |website=Bloomberg |access-date=July 13, 2025 |date=April 11, 2025}} Prior to the appointment of Weiner and Anolic, Contrafund was one of the largest sole-manager funds in the world.{{cite web |last1=Greengold |first1=Robby |title=Fidelity Contrafund's Will Danoff No Longer Running It Solo |url=https://www.morningstar.com/funds/fidelity-contrafunds-will-danoff-no-longer-running-it-solo |website=Morningstar |access-date=July 13, 2025 |language=en |date=April 11, 2025}}
As of 2025, Fidelity Contrafund holds $280{{nbsp}}billion in assets and is one of the largest actively-managed mutual funds.
Philanthropy
File:William & Ami Danoff Hall, Brown University.jpg]]
Danoff and his wife have been board members and supporters of Harvard College, as well as several community organizations in Greater Boston. Brown University named a residence hall and planned life sciences research laboratory after the couple, "in recognition of a generous gift."{{cite news |last1=McGregor |first1=Amanda |title=In recognition of a generous gift, Brown University names the William and Ami Danoff Residence Hall |url=https://www.brown.edu/news/2022-10-19/danoff-hall |access-date=1 September 2023 |publisher=Brown University |date=19 October 2022}}{{cite news |last1=Clark |first1=Brian |title=Brown names William A. and Ami Kuan Danoff Life Sciences Laboratories in recognition of generous gift |url=https://www.brown.edu/news/2024-09-12/danoff-laboratories |access-date=22 January 2025 |publisher=Brown University |date=12 September 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241224163550/https://www.brown.edu/news/2024-09-12/danoff-laboratories |archive-date=24 December 2024}}
See also
References
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Category:American money managers
Category:Harvard College alumni
Category:Wharton School alumni
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