For the past three months, small stocks were the big story. Small-cap funds gained 21.5% on average in the quarter, led by small value’s 22.2% rise. Standouts included Aegis Value Fund /quotes/comstock/10r!avalx (AVALX 6.82, -0.23, -3.26%) , up 48.5%, and Wasatch Micro Cap Value Fund /quotes/comstock/10r!wamvx (WAMVX 1.72, -0.05, -2.82%) , up 40%.

Large- and midcap offerings followed with their own strong showings.

Large-cap funds collectively added 16.2%, with large-blend and large-value each up 16.4% and large-growth up 15.6%. Among the top performers were the hardest-hit funds of 2008, such as Vanguard Capital Value Fund /quotes/comstock/10r!vcvlx (VCVLX 6.62, -0.18, -2.65%) , up 39.1%, Yacktman Focused Fund /quotes/comstock/10r!yaffx (YAFFX 12.59, -0.36, -2.78%) , up 36.9%, Legg Mason Value Trust /quotes/comstock/10r!lmvtx (LMVTX 28.64, -1.05, -3.54%) , gaining 29.4%, and Longleaf Partners Fund /quotes/comstock/10r!llpfx (LLPFX 18.90, -0.52, -2.68%) , rising 26.6%.
Continue reading Low-Quality stocks with high gains

• Edenor: shares rising by more than 50% over the past three months. Investors can follow stocks with the Argentina and Electric Utilities tags over in CAPS, where Edenor, though down by nearly 70% over the past year, is one of the top-rated stocks in both categories.

• Valmont Industries: Water, water everywhere — but we need some way to make the most of it. Step into Valmont Industries, which along with competitor Lindsay (NYSE: LNN) controls more than two-thirds of the market for efficient irrigation equipment, according to BusinessWeek.

PNC Financial Services Group Inc: +5.06

Goldman Sachs Group Inc: +4.02

State Street Corp: +3.92