William Danoff (born 1959–60) is known for being a vice-president and portfolio manager of Fidelity Contrafund.[1] In 2016, at US$108 billion, Contrafund is one of the largest managed stock or bond mutual funds run by one person.[2]
Education and early career
Danoff received a degree in history from Harvard in 1982 and an MBA from Wharton in 1986.[3] First joining Fidelity as an analyst in 1986,[4] Danoff trained under Peter Lynch, who managed Fidelity's Magellan Fund in the 1970s.
Fidelity Contrafund
William Danoff is the single manager of Fidelity Investments's flagship mutual fund, Contrafund. Contrafund is one of Fidelity's largest mutual funds, holding over $129 billion in assets, making it the largest single-manager mutual fund in the world.
Fidelity Contrafund is the second largest actively managed mutual fund in the market in 2014, behind the American Funds Growth Fund of America (AGTHX). The American Funds team managed about $138.9 billion, about a quarter larger than Contrafund.[5] In 2015, Fidelity had not named a co-manager for Contrafund.[4]
Danoff and his wife have been board members and supporters of Harvard College, as well as several community organizations in Greater Boston.[6] In 2022, Brown University named a residence hall after them "in recognition of a generous gift."[6]
