Smart Money Thinks Big

Meanwhile, Bank of America's Thomas McManus, the least near-term bullish among the strategists cited here, writes that "if we were required to commit funds today for a reasonable investment horizon of several quarters or more, high-quality, large capitalization growth stocks still appear attractively valued, in our view."

As a long-term observer of Wall Street's prognosticators, my theory has always been that when several of the better gurus start singing the same tune, it usually pays to listen.

So, for Wednesday's "RealMoney" radio show (I'm the substitute host), I reviewed a selection of the big-cap growth stocks recommended by the aforementioned gurus. Each was recommended by at least two of the strategists, and the set is broken down into two groups: momentum and contrarian.

If you're a short-term trader and believe in the powers of "window dressing," focus on the momentum group, as these names are likely to remain strong through year end. However, watch out for weakness in the momentum names after Jan. 1, as those same window-dressing managers rebalance their portfolios.

Conversely, the contrarian group is likely to remain choppy through Dec. 31 as tax-related selling and money managers' aversion to having losers on the books at year end may keep them under pressure. That said, the contrarian group is likely to outperform in 2006, at least early on, and now might be a good time to start scaling into these name.

A quick caveat before proceeding: Just as I used the gurus' collective recommendations as simply a jumping off point, I strongly suggest you do the same with these names.

Momentum Begets Momentum

Hewlett-Packard (HPQ Quote): CEO Mark Hurd is enjoying a lavish honeymoon phase and with the stock up 41% year to date, H-P is probably the best big-cap growth name to own for the next 30 days. However, watch out for selling pressure in early 2006 as often befalls the best performers of a given year.

Amgen (AMGN Quote) is up 26% this year and has great long-term upside given what one hedge fund source called "exciting new drugs in the pipeline" for osteoporosis and cancer.

The source, who requested anonymity, noted that Amgen faces near-term risk to its anemia franchise because of Roche's planned launch of a competitive drug. Amgen is challenging Roche in the courts, claiming patent infringement. I have no insight on when or how the courts may rule, but I do know there's a gap in Amgen's charts from mid-July, when the company reported much stronger-than-expected second-quarter earnings.

Amgen Disconnect