Just found some interesting and recent video interviews with David Winters who runs the Wintergreen Fund.
The fund has returned ~8% per annum since inception in 2005, compared to VFINX (Vanguard’s S&P 500 Index fund) which has returned ~2.3%.
The top ten holdings of the fund are below:
| Issuer | % of Total Net Assets |
|---|---|
| Jardine Matheson Holdings Ltd. | 8.0% |
| Swatch Group AG, Bearer | 5.7% |
| Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. | 5.6% |
| British American Tobacco plc | 5.2% |
| Anglo American plc | 4.8% |
| Schindler Holding AG – PC | 4.6% |
| Genting Malaysia Bhd | 3.9% |
| Imperial Tobacco Group plc | 3.9% |
| Berkshire Hathaway Inc., Class B | 3.5% |
| Nestle SA | 3.4% |
David Winters was featured in Barron’s earlier last month below is an excerpt:
The well-respected manager of the Wintergreen Fund doesn’t offer global stock-market prognostications. He buys cheap shares just about anywhere in the world and is willing to hold them for as long as five years, taking an activist role if needed. So is it a good time to shop abroad? “You can buy really high-quality companies today, because people have given up on equities,” says Winters. “Trillions of dollars are on the sidelines earning 17 basis points in T-bills. The most compelling companies have exposures to the Far East and other parts of the world that are continuing to do well economically, and that should be the case for the rest of the year.”
typical Wintergreen (WGRNX) holding is Hong Kong-based conglomerateJardine Matheson (JM.Singapore), which owns stakes in high-class hotelierMandarin Oriental (MAND.Singapore) and supermarket chain Dairy Farm International (DFI.Singapore), and trades at a discount to its net-asset value. Among other big positions: Swiss accessories company Swatch Group(UHR.Switzerland); energy-producerCanadian Natural Resources (CNQ.Canada); and British American Tobacco (BTI). Winters is a fan of tobacco companies for their big dividends and cash.
He also likes Birchcliff Energy (BIR.Canada), a natural-gas exploration and development company: “We think it’s undervalued and well-run.”
One of Winters’ more interesting holdings is Genting Malaysia (GENM.Malaysia), the Malaysian casino giant that is developing a slot-machine and table-games casino for day trippers at Aqueduct Raceway in the New York City borough of Queens. It will be Genting’s first operation in the U.S. The new venue will make up as much as 10% of its net-asset value and will be accretive, he adds. Genting may some day be a household word not just to Malaysians but to U.S. investors, too. — Leslie P. Norton
In the videos below David Winters talks about global investing. He sees opportunities in equities around the world with a specific emphasis on Asia. He also talks about the macro picture and thinks the US economy will recover slowly.
