The Daily Screen: The Best Small-Cap Value Funds With Tenured Skippers

There are cheap stocks and there are undervalued stocks and the twain don't necessarily meet, especially in the dicey world of small-cap stocks.

Value investing is the art of finding stocks that you think are trading far below what you consider their true value. Problem is, there are tons of stocks that look cheap relative to their peers, expected earnings, or the overall market. Most of these are probably cheap for a reason, but some are simply undervalued for one reason or another and can be a good investment. It's especially tough to discern cheapness from value among small-cap stocks -- those with market capitalizations below $1.5 billion -- because this area doesn't get as much coverage from Wall Street analysts.

That said, overlooked small-cap value funds can buoy a tech-heavy portfolio when that once-hot sector cools like it has this year. Since Jan. 1, the average small-cap value fund is up almost 10% in a year when most indices and funds are underwater. ...