Mario Gabelli Launches Ultra-concentrated fund

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Mario Gabelli just launched the Fabelli Focus Five Fund. This fund is one of the most concentrated, which I have ever seen. The fund will invest up to 50% of the portfolio in just five securities. Right away Bruce Berkowitz comes to mind as a recent fiasco, however, we believe this fund will be different for several reasons.

1. The fund will hold the additional 50% in other securities or cash. Bruce Berkowitz invested close to the entire fund in financials. The fund prospecturs states “Focus Five Fund will invest at least 80% of its assets under normal market conditions in equity securities of companies that are considered to be small capitalization” companies at the time of investment. However,  we believe Gabelli will not invest 99% in equities, especially since he is on CNBC quite often.

2. Gabelli has much more experience in the industry. Although Berkowitz was managing Fairholme for ~12 years, Gabelli started out decades ago.

3.  This is the most important. The fund is much more diversified than Fairholme.

Below is a chart of industry allocation as per the latest release:

Diversified Industrial . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13.9%
Business Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.3%
Computer Software and Services . . . . . . . . 8.4%
Health Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.4%
Equipment and Supplies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.2%
U.S. Government Obligations . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.0%
Consumer Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.0%
Specialty Chemicals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.8%
Retail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4%
Telecommunications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3%
Financial Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.9%
Machinery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.7%
Energy and Utilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.9%
Food and Beverage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.8%
Aerospace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.6%
Electronics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.9%
Restaurants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.7%
Publishing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.4%
Hotels and Gaming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.3%
Educational Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.1%
Communications Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . 1.0%
Transportation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.0%
Entertainment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0.8%
Automotive: Parts and Accessories . . . . . . 0.5%
Commercial Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0.2%
Other Assets and Liabilities (Net) . . . . . . . 0.5%
100.0%

Below is the press release.

Disclosure: No position

RYE, N.Y., Jan 03, 2012 (BUSINESS WIRE) — GAMCO Investors, Inc. GBL +0.07% , today announced the launch of The Gabelli Focus Five Fund– a concentrated fund that will seek to invest up to 50% of the fund in five companies. The balance of the fund is expected to invest in no more than twenty additional equity securities, short-term high-grade liquid investments or cash equivalents.

The strategy for the Focus Five Fund is similar to Gabelli & Company’s research report, The Focus Five, published quarterly since January 2006.

Daniel M. Miller will lead the Fund’s portfolio management team, which also includes Sarah Donnelly and Elizabeth Lilly. Mr. Miller is also currently President of Gabelli & Company, Inc., and has managed the firm’s institutional equities business since 2004. He graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of Miami.

The Focus Five Fund represents a change in direction for the Gabelli Woodland Small Cap Fund. The Board of Directors of The Gabelli Equity Series Funds, Inc, approved the Fund’s name change and the amendments to its current investment strategy. The Fund will continue to invest at least 80% of its assets in small cap companies during the notice period. Subsequently, the Fund intends to invest without limitation on market capitalization.

“The launch of the Gabelli Focus Five Fund underscores our commitment to fundamental bottom-up research,” said Mario J. Gabelli, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer of GAMCO Investors, Inc. “Dan has been a key driver in creating and selecting the Focus Five with our research team. The result is a fund concentrated in the great research ideas generated by our team of analysts.”

Ms. Lilly joined Gabelli Funds in 2002 and has served as portfolio manager for The Gabelli Woodland Small Cap Fund and GAMCO Mighty Mites Fund. She began her career as a research analyst with Goldman Sachs in 1985.

Ms. Donnelly joined GAMCO in 1999 as a research analyst and currently follows the food and household products industries. She holds a B.S. in Finance from Fordham University.

GAMCO Investors, Inc., through its subsidiaries, manages private advisory accounts (GAMCO Asset Management Inc.), mutual funds and closed-end funds (Gabelli Funds, LLC), and partnerships and offshore funds (Gabelli Securities, Inc.). As of September 30, 2011, GAMCO had $31.3 billion in assets under management.

The Focus Five Fund is a “non-diversified” investment company which means that it can concentrate its investments in the securities of fewer companies to a greater extent than a diversified investment company. Because the Fund may invest its assets in the securities of a limited number of companies, a change in the value of the stock of any one of these issuers may have a significant impact on the Fund’s share price.

Investors should carefully consider the investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses of the Fund before investing. The prospectus contains information about these and other matters and should be read carefully before investing. To obtain a prospectus, call 800-GABELLI (800-422-3554) or visit www.gabelli.com . Distributed by G.distributors, LLC, One Corporate Center, Rye, NY 10580.

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Mario Gabelli Launches Ultra-concentrated fund

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