For 15 years, Bill Miller, CEO of Legg Mason Capital Management, has managed to eke out better performance for his Legg Mason Value Trust than S&P500. Now, Miller has revealed the secret to his success. The fact is, he says in a letter to new shareholders, the streak is merely “a fortunate accident of the calendar.” He explains that over the past decade and a half, the December-to-December time frame is “the only one of the twelve-month periods where our results have always outpaced those of the index.” While “flattered” if the fund’s winning record is the reason for investing, Miller says, “If your expectation is that we will outperform the market every year, you can expect to be disappointed.” Miller goes on in great detail explaining how the fund invests, and concludes, "[W]e cannot promise performance, but we can promise no one will care more about your money or work harder for you than our investment team.”
