Maura Shaughnessy
MFS Utilities Fund
Utilities funds don't typically generate electrifying returns, but Maura Shaughnessy isn't your typical manager. Her MFS Utilities Fund, which invests in utilities, telecoms, and energy companies, has returned 11.5% annually since its 1992 inception, compared with 8.1% for the S&P 500.
Her favorite long-term holding now is Virgin Media, a U.K. cable company partially owned by Richard Branson. Virgin Media operates the U.K.'s only fiber-rich consumer network, and Shaughnessy thinks its speed will win new customers.
Virgin requires only "modest" revenue growth, she says, to generate huge free cash flow because of its low costs. She also applauds its recent move to refinance its debts. Virgin's valuation is on par with its peers -- but Shaughnessy thinks it deserves a premium.
--M.K.
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