5-Star Stocks: The 'A' List
Michael Jones runs the five-star Touchstone Value Opportunities Fund, up an average of 12.56 percent per year over the last five years.
What's his "Triple-A" strategy?
Recommendations:
Topping his list is Alcoa.
"Alcoa's done a great job of positioning (itself) for the current environment of energy costs going up," he told CNBC.
He sees Alcoa's main product -- aluminum -- being substituted for other metals as manufacturers seek to control costs. And he notes that Alcoa plants have been situated near renewable energy sources.
Jones also likes ABB.
"They're probably the most well-positioned provider of (electrical) transmission equipment," he said. "Number one in North America, number one in Asia, number two in Europe."
Rounding out his "A" list is bond insurer Assured Guaranty, which recently raised eyebrows as Moody's Investors Service said it is considering a downgrade of as many as two notches, and JPMorgan downgraded it to neutral from overweight.
"We think (it) is in pretty good shape," he said. "They've increased their market share in the municipal bond-underwriting business by a dramatic amount this year; their underwriting is up 15-fold, year-to-date, over last year; we think they have adequate capital."
