Daily Screen: Large-Cap Blend Funds

The category is called large-cap blend, but most of the top funds here are pretty growth-oriented.

First things first: Large-cap blend funds typically invest in stocks of large companies, blending growth and value stocks. Growth stocks are typically those of fast-growing companies that sell at a steep price relative to their earnings, such as networking dynamo Cisco Systems (CSCO Quote). Value stocks are typically those of slower growers in mature industries like International Paper (IP Quote). These companies often pay dividends, and fund managers buy them because they think they're undervalued. Growth investors essentially swing for the seats, while value investors are basically the bargain hunters of Wall Street.

As usual, we've screened for funds that beat the category's average return over the past one- and three-year periods, according to Morningstar. The top 10 are ranked by one-year return in the first table. The pack that make our list are among the category's more aggressive funds that have typically ridden high-octane growth stocks in the technology sector to higher returns than more conservative peers. On average, the these top-10 funds have about half their assets invested in tech and telecom stocks, according to their most recent portfolio reports. ...