The Franklin DynaTech fund is full of stocks that look expensive but that also long-term growth trajectories and big market opportunities, as detailed in an article in Barron’s. The fund, which has ranked in at least the top 7% of its category over the past 3, 5, 10 and 15 years, has a long, storied history. It predates the term “Silicon Valley,” where it is based, and some of the regions other high-profile firms. But it’s always been a diversified growth fund.
From the the beginning, the firm has focused on innovation, often in the form of multitrillion-dollar platforms like the iPhone or genomics. To understand the transformative potential of such new products and services requires long-term thinking—and patience from investors. The portfolio includes top positions that have been there for a decade or more, like Alphabet (bought in 2004) and Amazon (bought 2007). A current focus is on genomics; DynaTech owns shares of BioNTech and Moderna, investing in multiple companies because a leader has yet to be established in the field.
DynaTech expects simpler genetic testing and diagnostics to advance sooner than more complex next-gen therapies, and sees the company’s portfolio pivoting toward owning more of the type of companies that will have genomics-related therapies on the market a decade or so out.