Fund Managers: Go With Energy Stocks, Mid-Caps

To give investors an edge on their portfolios, CNBC asked the market experts for their best stock picks now. 

Energy Plays

“The commodity we’re still excited about is electricity across North America.  We think there’s underinvestment still in that sector, and we think prices still have to move higher."

- Steve Weeple, Standard Life Investments Head of U.S. Equities

Weeple likes: Dynegy , Reliant Resources , Itron and Comverge .

Small and Mid-Cap Plays

Innospec "is one of the largest makers of diesel fuel additives, and right now we’re seeing a paradigm shift in the United States and in Europe toward more diesel engines…Environmental regulations now also require that companies add more additives to diesel fuel, so these guys are making profits both from volume and from additional environmental regulations.”

- Jonathan Vyorst, Paradigm Value Fund Portfolio Manager

Vyorst also likes: Sybase and Goodyear .

Financials, Cyclicals & More

“We bought some Bank of America last week…and I think even though they have a big issue surrounding the dividend and whether they’re going to cut it or not, I think the company’s in a good position to do extremely well coming out of this rough patch.”

- Ted Parrish, Henssler Equity Fund Co-Portfolio Manager

© 2008 CNBC.com