(FORTUNE Magazine) – It seems fitting that Elizabeth Bramwell's new office in New York City is on Fifth Avenue and has a view of Central Park. In February 1994, Bramwell quit her job managing the Gabelli Growth fund, partly because her boss, Mario Gabelli, wanted her to leave the city and join the rest of Gabelli & Co. in Rye, a New York suburb. Bramwell had run the fund since its inception in April 1987, producing an annual average return of 16.6%, vs. 10.8% for the S&P 500. She quickly started her own money- management firm and last August launched the Bramwell Growth fund, which has $29 million in assets and has returned 8% so far. Bramwell also runs Selected Special Shares, a small-stock fund. She talked recently with Fortune's Antony Michels.

How do you describe your new fund?

It's a general growth fund, so it's in everything from Merck on down to stocks with market capitalizations below $100 million. But mostly it's a mid-cap fund focused on companies with a median market value of $l.3 billion. I'm looking for companies that are selling at discounts to their growth rates based on 1995 and 1996 earnings estimates. If a company's earnings are growing 20% annually and the price/earnings ratio is 15, we consider that attractive. I think there are a lot of opportunities like that.

Why the emphasis on mid-caps?

We've gone through four years of initial public offerings, and I think there's a huge range of companies that are not efficiently researched by Wall Street. One is Enron Global Power & Pipelines, which was carved out of Enron, the natural gas company, to operate its electric power generating plants in the Philippines and Guatemala, and a pipeline in Argentina. The company should benefit as fast-growing developing countries expand their infrastructures. It has a market cap of about $500 million, and the stock yields 3.5%. It sells for $23, or 14 times 1995 earnings, and I think earnings can grow 20% annually starting in the late 1990s.

What investing themes are you pursuing?

I'm tending to own U.S. global companies whose historical foreign expertise will gradually be noticed, and rewarded, by the stock market. I like Colgate-Palmolive. It's been in foreign countries for decades and operates in more than 100 now. A few months ago Colgate acquired American Home Products' oral care business in Latin America and now has about 70% of Brazil's toothpaste market. I expect a 12-month return of about 15%. Although Colgate has had a good run and sells for 16 times 1995 earnings per share estimates, I'm willing at the moment to pay that much because of the diversification of its products and markets, and the consistency of its earnings power.

Technology is your largest sector, at 17% of assets. Why?

I think we're going into an age of real explosion in terms of new products, whether it's thin screens, HDTV, or video conferencing. In particular, I think worldwide demand for semiconductors will continue to be strong. Intel is our largest holding, at 3% of assets. It appears that the microprocessors of the future will control more of what was done by peripherals, so Intel will capture more control of the computer system. As that happens, I think Intel will break out of its historical pattern of selling at a discount to the market. The stock has moved up to about $82 but is still selling at 11 times estimated 1995 earnings.

About 6% of your portfolio is in industrial products? What's the strategy there?

We're in a really competitive world, and I like companies that enhance productivity. One that I own is Molex. It makes connectors for personal computers and home entertainment equipment. The connector market is growing twice as fast as GDP. I prefer the Molex A shares, which have no voting rights but are cheaper. They sell for about $33, or 21 times calendar 1995 earnings. Earnings should grow 18% annually for the next three years.

How about a small-cap pick?

I like a company called On Assignment, which has a market value of less than $100 million. It places scientific and technical workers in seasonal or short-term lab jobs, such as testing ketchup during the tomato season or water to meet government standards. The stock is around $16, or 19 times this year's earnings estimates. I think it will soon sell close to 22 times earnings.