Posted on: Monday, July 16, 2001

Fidelity Investments plans four new funds

Bloomberg News Service

BOSTON — Fidelity Investments, the biggest U.S. mutual fund company, plans to start four new funds, two focused on undervalued stocks and two on growth stocks.

The Boston-based company plans to offer Fidelity Structured Large Cap Value Fund, Fidelity Structured Mid Cap Value Fund, Fidelity Structured Large Cap Growth Fund and Fidelity Structured Mid Cap Growth Fund, according a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

David Pittelli, senior analyst at Fidelity Investor, a monthly newsletter based in Needham, Mass., said Fidelity already offers funds in all four areas.

"They really have all these areas covered, but it's just that the names will be useful to people looking to do their Morningstar style box thing," he said.

The style box published by Chicago-based fund research company Morningstar Inc. identifies funds by the sizes of the companies they invest in and by investing style.

Each fund will be actively managed, and can invest in U.S. and foreign issuers.

The large-cap funds will typically invest at least 80 percent of assets in large-cap stocks, while the mid-cap funds will typically invest at least 80 percent in mid-caps.

Large Cap Value, managed by Robert Macdonald, will use the Russell 1000 Value Index as its benchmark, while Mid Cap Value, also managed by Macdonald, will use the Russell Midcap Value Index.

Large Cap Growth, managed by Jeff Kerrigan, will have the Russell 1000 Growth Index as its benchmark, while Mid Cap Growth, also managed by Kerrigan, will use the Russell Midcap Growth Index.

Both Macdonald, who joined Fidelity in 1985, and Kerrigan, who joined in 1999, currently manage institutional portfolios for the mutual fund company, according to spokesman Vin Loporchio. The funds are expected to be available by late September, he said.

Fidelity manages $914.2 billion in assets.