Down and discouraged for the first four months of the year, the U.S. stock market has bounced back in May. The benchmark S&P 500 is up 12.5% over the past month and is back in the black year to date, returning 1% as of the May 20 close.
That doesn’t mean the stock market is fully recovered, as many threats have only moderated and not been eliminated. It means there are enough “sweet spot” opportunities for investors to capitalize on more favorable opportunities, if they know where to look.
In such a vulnerable, emerging market environment, these are the stocks some of the savviest stock pickers like best, with their returns year to date compared with their particular industry’s average.
This post originally appeared at U.S. News & World Report.