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Bonnel Growth Fund |
| Art Bonnel, portfolio manager of the Bonnel Growth Fund, was President and Registered Investment Advisor for Bonnel, Inc. from 1974 to 1987. During this time, he developed a proprietary stock selection system to seek high growth issues. With over 25 years experience in the financial industry, Mr. Bonnel has served on the Board of Directors of the Kansas City Board of Trade, held a seat on the Exchange and was a Trust Officer for Security National Bank of Nevada. |
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Mr. Bonnel graduated from the University of Nevada with a Bachelor's of Science in Economics. He is an instructor and past President of the Foundation Board at Truckee Meadows Community College, Reno, Nevada.
Mr. Bonnel is a professional speaker for various national associations and has been a guest commentator on PBS Nightly Business Report, CNBC, CNNfn MarketWrap and Your Portfolio. He has been quoted as an authority on growth stocks in USA Today, The Wall Street Journal and Investor's Business Daily as well as featured in Worth, Forbes, Fortune and Mutual Funds magazines, Kiplinger's Personal Finance, Wall Street Transcript and Louis Rukeyser's Mutual Funds. |
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Where were you 5 years ago?
The Dow Jones Industrial Average peaked at 3,978 in January, 1994. In the Congressional elections, the Republicans won control of both the U.S. Senate and the House of Representatives for the first time since the 1950s. And, in October, U.S. Global Accolade Funds introduced its first fund: the Bonnel Growth Fund. Recently, portfolio manager Art Bonnel was in San Antonio and had an opportunity to meet with shareholders. Here's what Art had to say about the Bonnel Growth Fund, the market and what he expects to happen in the new millennium. Q. Has the fund lived up to its expectations since it was started five years ago? A. When we started five years ago my objective was to have a successful mutual fund that investors could look on with pride and say, "Yes, I own the Bonnel Growth Fund." Now, looking at our five-year return, I am very pleased with the results. It is interesting because at a recent conference, a lady came up to me and said, "I can't thank you enough. You really helped make my retirement much easier. Can I give you a hug?" She was under five feet tall, so I leaned over and she reached up and gave me this big hug. It made me feel so good to make her feel happy about her investment. It is so satisfying to be able to help other people achieve their goals. I have been in this business over 25 years and it is always fun to talk to my investors. What I especially like is knowing many of the shareholders have been with me for most of the five years I have been running this fund. Many of them now realize the importance of long-term investing. The fund has had ups and downs. But the "ups" have been better than the "downs." I can't tell you how many shareholders ask when there might be another sell off so they can put more money into the fund. A monthly dollar cost averaging plan, like U.S. Global Investors’ ABC Investment Plan,® is really the best way to go. People should invest in the market if they have a long range (at least three and preferably five years) investment goal. Q. What does this anniversary mean to you? A. This is an important anniversary because five years shows stability. It gives investors the opportunity to see the results of long-term investing and just what compounding can do. It is a real milestone. When the fund first started, it had under one million dollars in it. Recently the fund reached assets of over $125 million. It has been a great five years. I have met a lot of wonderful people, made new friends and worked hard. At the same time, I’ve had fun doing what I love to do. Q. How do you expect the fund to change over the next five years? A. I don’t expect any major changes in the fund over the next five years. We have been using the same investment approach now for over two decades with great results. As they say, "Don't change horses in midstream.” The most successful investors realize that you need a consistent investment approach and not one that changes with the current "fad." The fund focuses on companies that have good earnings, a solid financial base and great prospects for the future. We focus on mid-cap stocks with a few small-cap and large-cap just to make things interesting. Hopefully, the only change will be that the fund grows in size. This will help reduce costs and increase shareholder returns. Q. What obstacles do you foresee with Y2K and the Presidential election happening concurrently? A. Y2K and the Presidential election are going to have extremely positive implications for the stock market. The market normally does well in election years since the party in power wants to remain in power. They do everything they can to keep the economy running at a steady clip. Put this together with the money that will be reinvested in the market after the beginning of the year (once it is determined that there were no Y2K problems) and we have the ingredients for a strong bull market. Let's take a moment and talk about Y2K. We do not believe that there will be any major disruptions. There may be some minor inconveniences. This country has been working on fixing potential problems for well over three years. So just enjoy the new year as it rolls around. However people are becoming aware that everyone should have supplies in the event of an emergency. Recently Taiwan had an earthquake and Florida had a hurricane. If you are prepared for something, it is never as bad as it could have been. Recently a construction crew was working on a road near my house and they hit a water main. It flooded out the house across the street and water was not available in the neighborhood for two days. So anything can happen at any time. It never hurts to just "be prepared." Q. What is your outlook on E-business? A. E-business is going to do nothing but get bigger! We are looking for quality investments where the companies are showing profits and have great financial positions. As you know, we only purchase companies with earnings. At the present time, most e-commerce companies are not making any money. For that reason we do not own them. However, within the next few years, the quality companies will start to show a profit and at that time you will see them in the portfolio. This is similar to what happened to the biotech stocks in the early 1990's. And today, what do you find in the fund? Amgen, Biogen and other quality biotechs. If you take the question just one step further, the fund is indirectly involved because of our investments in technology. Intel, Microsoft, Cisco and a plethora of other issues are supplying and or making parts for this industry. So only the future knows which "dot.com" companies we will hold, but eventually we will hold them. Investing in the Bonnel Growth Fund is easy. Just $1,000 to start and at least a $100 per month investment thereafter gets you started with our ABC Investment Plan.®* We suggest investors us a dollar-cost averaging program, such as the ABC Investment Plan®, to build a small position in the fund and take advantage of the benefits of investing a set amount on a regular basis. Art Bonnel's 10 Tips for Selecting Growth Stocks
For more information on the Bonnel Growth Fund, including charges and expenses, please call 1-800-US-FUNDS or click here to download a free prospectus that includes charges and ongoing expenses. Please read the prospectus carefully before you invest or send money. *A program of regular investing doesn't assure a profit or protect against depreciation in a declining market. You should evaluate your ability to continue in such a program in view of the possibility that you may have to redeem fund shares in periods of declining share prices as well as in periods of rising prices. |
