The Palm Beach Post from West Palm Beach, Florida • Page 89

SATURDAY, MAY 9, 1998 The Palm Beach Post SECTION WEEKEND X' I E- xz A 8 if Sometimes foibles lead to fables STORY, 21S Susan Antilla A little knowledge can lead to disaster ft UPPER i IMuzi fund pcriscopa By Upper Analytical Services, Inc. and The Associated Press. Note: Funds must have five years of performance history in order to be evaluated. The fund seeks long-term capital growth by investing primarily in established companies with large market capitalizations. A took at the most noteworthy funds in America.

White Oak Growth Stock Fund The White Oak, a tree found in eastern North American forests, is known for sturdiness and longevity. The White Oak Growth Stock Fund not only shares this tree's name, but also the durability and strength the tree embodies. Fund family Advisors Inner Circle Funds Phone 800-932-7781 Adviser Oak Associates Portfolio manager OelschlagerMacKayBarton, since 1992 Fund began 1992 Total net assets $563.1 million as of March 31 Minimum first investment $2,000 Load (maximum) None Redemption fee None 12b-l plan None i Expense ratio 0.98 Growth For the 5-year period ending April 30, the White Oak Growth Stock Fund ranked fourth out of 324 funds in the growth fund objective; it ranked 25th out of 977 funds for the year-to-date period. A $10,000 investment in the White Oak Growth Stock Fund five years ago would now be worth $35,904 vs. $25,330 for the Upper Growth Fund Index.

(As of April 30) Top sectors A technology-heavy portfolio Essential to the White Oak Growth Stock Fund's success is a down-to-earth investment philosophy rooted in long-term growth and tenacious research. Doug MacKay, the assistant portfolio manager, attributes the fund's success to a low turnover rate, a top-down approach to investing, and an emphasis on high-growth sectors. Since its inception in August 1992, the fund has returned a stunning 265.76 percent, and has overwhelmingly outperformed the Upper Growth Fund Index in the two-, three- and five-year performance periods. Currently the fund has 24 holdings and is concentrated in three primary sectors. The financial service sector makes up approximately one-fourth of the portfolio and includes security companies, insurance companies and banks.

The health-care sector is one-fifth of the portfolio and is composed of pharmaceuticals and health equipment companies. The technology sector constitutes more than one-half of the portfolio and comprises the broadest array of companies. Software, semiconductors, network services and hardware are examples of the surprisingly diverse technology sector. The fund's heavy position in technology is no accident MacKay believes gains in technology have greatly improved productivity, which has allowed the economy to grow to record levels while keeping prices low. MacKay suggests that America is leading a new industrial revolution similar to the economic expansion America experienced a century ago, and as long as corporate giants like Proctor Gamble and General Motors spend to improve productivity, the technology sector will remain a strong investment MacKay and portfolio manager James Oelshclager always keep one eye on interest rates when making investment decisions.

MacKay acknowledges higher interest rates may temporarily affect the portfolio's returns. However; he remains optimistic about the effects of a possible rate hike. The fund's primary concern is not a temporary change in interest rates but rather their long term trend. According to MacKay, even the threat of rising interest rates may be beneficial: It can be seen as a "wake up call to corporate a warning to remain focused and to avoid getting sloppy. of total net assets 5.4 5.1 5.0 5.0 Top holdings Cisco Systems Pfizer Inc Compaq Ascend Comm of total net assets 97.0 0.0 0.0 3.0 0.0 of total net assets 53.0 24.0 20.0 3.0 5.4 Asset allocation Common Convertibles Bonds Cash Equiv.

Other Technology Finance Health Care Other linear Tech NEW YORK We may have to take it all back that stockbrokers can cause the worst imaginable wreckage in your financial life. Certified public accountants with a license to give investment advice can out-ravage even the broker short on cash for his next swimming pool payment. Or so say 12 investors who have sued a former accountant for losing more than a million of their dollars in dangerous, illiquid investments that blew up on them big-time. At a securities arbitration hearing scheduled for June, former accountant Allan Viscardi will face the adversaries who say he parked their money in dicey private placements that went bust. Among the gems: Grandy's Caribbean Project, a partnership setting out on its first venture (it went bankrupt), and several private offerings of Financial one of which Viscardi said in writing would be "a rather conservative double in two years." All are worthless, the suit says.

This isn't an isolated case. "People say, 'I can trust my accountant on how to handle my Accountants are supposed to be impartial," says Philip A. Feigin, the Colorado securities commissioner. Viscardi, whose business card identified him as partner at "Financial Alternatives, an Affiliate of Gramkow Carnevale CPAs," shared office space with Gramkow Carnevale in Orad- Mease see ANTlLUV2iS White Oak Growth Stock Fund On a scale of A to How did this How did this fund rank? objective rank? jUUy 1 ma 280QQ 26000 24000 22000 20000 lflOOO 14009 1050 12000 10000 eooo 6O09 4000 NA Current Market NA Last Bear Market NA Last Bull Market A (As of April 30) Avg. for all funds In obj.

Cumulative return This fund If you invested $2,500 five years ago and added another $500 every quarter, the result would be $29,377.39. The total value includes change in share price, reinvestment of dividends and capital gains. It is not intended to portray the future performance of this fund or any fund. 39.55 153.30 387.53 0.50 lYear 5 Years 10 Years 12-Month Yield 48.81 259.04 NA 0.02 By Upper Analytical Services ruim o) a fill III Available Mornings, Afternoons. Evenings Weekends.

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