Investors generally look for underperforming stocks that will improve in performance over time and reward them with attractive returns. The strategy adopted by Cookson Peirce Core Equity Fund manager Bruce W. Miller is just the reverse. He follows a proprietary investment process that relies on a judicious and consistent sell discipline, and invests in strong stocks that are outperforming the market and continue to do so.

Many important academic studies have shown that a globally diversified portfolio is safer, less risky and more diversified than just investing in the U.S. In the long-run, it is more important to get the long-term global market and industry trends right rather than individual company fundamentals. Shepherd Large Cap Growth Fund manager Paul Dietrich subscribes to these findings and tracks “Global Super-Cycle” trends by using a specialized relative strength tracking methodology.

Identifying high return companies in the relatively volatile small-cap and mid-cap space requires considerable experience and expertise. Ryan Crane, portfolio manager of the Stephens Mid Cap Growth Fund and the Stephens Small Cap Growth Fund, and his research team employ a judicious combination of fundamental and quantitative analyses in their unique dual-approach strategy to make money from growth investments for their two funds.

Global investing with all its inherent sector, country-specific and currency risks requires broader perspective and a disciplined approach. Sentinel International Equity Fund manager Kate Schapiro and her team follow a unique strategy that tracks country, global, sector and even style trends, to pick stocks that will provide above average returns over the long term with a moderate level of volatility.

Identifying superior businesses with sustained high returns on capital in a universe of small to mid-cap stocks is easier said than done. FPA Perennial Fund manager Eric S. Ende endeavors to do exactly that by adopting a judicious strategy of a company-oriented approach, scrutinizing past track records, and analyzing the businesses to confirm that the company’s past superior performance will most likely continue into the future.

Investing in growth stocks restricted to U.S.-located and traded businesses is quite a challenging task today, when the US economy is clearly not the growth engine of the world. Edgewood Growth Retail Fund manager Alan W. Breed and his team of portfolio managers face this challenge and look to invest in high-quality, large-cap growth companies when they are trading at very attractive valuation.

For some investors, global diversification means buying a couple of foreign stocks, but for David Basten, it means leaving no market segment or geography uncovered. With the ambitious goal to provide a complete and efficient portfolio, the company runs five separate funds that, when combined, provide a balanced whole. One of those five funds, the Capital Income Fund, invests in dividend or interest paying securities of all sizes and locations.