Baron Partners Fund Q4 2025 Shareholder Letter

Fund increased 19.07% (Institutional Shares), exceeding benchmark

Published on Feb. 18, 2026

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Baron Partners Fund® (the Fund) appreciated substantially in the quarter, increasing in value 19.07% (Institutional Shares), exceeding both its primary benchmark, the Russell Midcap Growth Index (the Index), and the broader Russell 3000 Index (the Market Index). The Fund's performance also meaningfully exceeded peers in the Morningstar Large Growth Category (the Peer Group), which were up modestly (+0.55%) for the quarter.

Why it matters

The Fund's long-term absolute and relative performance has been very good, returning 17.94% annualized since conversion to a mutual fund on April 30, 2003, exceeding the Index by 6.23% per year. The Fund has also outperformed the Index over the prior 3-, 5-, 10-, 15-, and 20-year periods.

The details

The Fund is non-diversified with much of its assets concentrated in the top 10 positions. We aim to achieve diversification, despite this concentration, by investing in companies with unique characteristics that perform differently in different market environments. Much of the positive performance in 2025 was driven by the Fund's Disruptive Growth holdings, which includes two private companies, Space Exploration Technologies Corp. and X.AI Holdings Corp (X.AI), that more than doubled in value over the last twelve months. The segment also contains three companies that appreciated double digits for the year, including the Fund's largest position by average weight, Tesla, Inc (TSLA).

  • On July 4, Quinn allegedly dove onto the hood of a Waymo vehicle and covered sensors.
  • On July 29, Quinn allegedly damaged a Waymo's tires and driver's side mirror.
  • On August 11, Quinn allegedly stomped on a windshield while someone was inside.

The players

Waymo

An American autonomous driving company and is a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc., Google's parent company.

Walker Reed Quinn

A 45-year-old San Francisco resident who has a history of vandalism and was out on bail for prior cases related to Waymo vehicles.

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What they’re saying

“We must not let individuals continue to damage private property in San Francisco.”

— Robert Jenkins, San Francisco resident (San Francisco Chronicle)

“Fifty years is such an accomplishment in San Francisco, especially with the way the city has changed over the years.”

— Gordon Edgar, grocery employee (Instagram)

What’s next

The judge in the case will decide on Tuesday whether or not to allow Walker Reed Quinn out on bail.

The takeaway

This case highlights growing concerns in the community about repeat offenders released on bail, raising questions about bail reform, public safety on SF streets, and if any special laws to govern autonomous vehicles in residential and commercial areas.