Despite the ongoing bear market, fund manager Robert Turner believes growth stocks are ready to come back into vogue. He likes to point out that over the past 30 years, growth and value investing styles have alternated every two to three years -- and value's current preeminence has already lasted two years.

Microsoft

"When you look at Microsoft's earnings that were just reported this week, they were quite good, and the deferred revenue line went up 38 percent year-over-year. Microsoft projected 15 percent earnings growth for next year, and I don't think a lot of companies are projecting growth of 15 percent or better.

"Now Microsoft, which at one point had been very highly valued, is valued at a multiple just modestly above the S&P 500, even though the company's growth rate is projected to be double that of the S&P 500. We're looking for a modest pickup in PCs, and we like the new areas: consumer with MSN and X-Box; and enterprise with .NET. These are small areas, but they're growing rapidly."

Cisco Systems

"Cisco has had two quarters of earnings above expectations, and there's a probability that the company's earnings go up as much as 30 percent next year."

Brocade

"Storage area network companies such as QLogic, McData and Emulex have already announced good earnings, so we expect Brocade, a leader in this industry, to report good earnings as well."

General Electric

"GE is trading at just 15 times earnings, but I don't think there are any accounting issues here. GE knew they were under a microscope a long time ago, and they've now had two quarters of earnings since they released their 2001 annual report. The chances of something happening with their accounting over the next three weeks is slim." (Ed. note: As of Aug. 14, CEOs of publicly-traded companies will be required to personally certify their financial reports)

Intel

"We're taking a wait-and-see approach on Intel. If PC sales improve, we will get into it."

Amgen

"We don't own this one either, but we would feel comfortable with it when the earnings numbers come down and become more realistic. Amgen announces earnings next week, and we think the numbers could go down."

Michael Balkin's picks

As a small cap specialist, Balkin sits at the other end of the growth spectrum from Robert Turner. But those small stocks, combined with a self-described contrarian streak, have helped Balkin post better returns than most growth stock managers over the past couple of years.

Vitalworks

"One of our most successful holdings in 2001. It's a terrific little company that's one of the leaders in software for managing doctors' offices.

"We got into this stock in early 2000, after a sell-side analyst at William & Blair told us to take a look at it. Vitalworks was a splitoff of another publicly-traded company that divided into two pieces. Most people got excited about the dental practice management software, but we looked at the other part, Vitalworks, the piece that nobody cared about, yet it was the third-largest physician management software company in the country.

"They had just brought in new management that was convinced they were turning this company around, and after meeting with them, we felt the same. They've turned it into a profitable company that may be debt-free by the end of the year. They have 85,000 doctors signed up, and doctors are very slow to change technology, so once you have that base, you have a nice revenue stream."

Career Education

"Career Education, which specializes in culinary arts and technology, is a post-secondary education company, and with a lot more people going back for degrees, enrollment growth has been terrific. We're looking at earnings growth of 25 percent over the next several years."

First Service

"This is a largest manager of condominiums in the North America, and they do provide other services, like pool cleaning, fire restoration services and security. It's not a widely-followed company, but it has a high level of recurring revenue."

Skillsoft

"Skillsoft is the leader in software for teaching 'soft skills' and it has a strong management team. The stock has come way down since the company announced it was buying Smartforce, but Skillsoft's earnings have been fine. Smartforce is the biggest player in software for corporate training of IT, so the deal will combine two leaders in training software. In two to three years, I think this is probably going to be the biggest winner on this page."

Sinclair Broadcast Group

"We thought the broadcast media space would be a good performer as we move into an economic recovery. A lot of media stocks have been beaten down horribly over the last several years. We made a bet and bought several of the broadcast and media stocks, and Sinclair was one. We feel good, because we're starting to see advertising and media spending coming back."

Startek

"It's a way to play technology without owning tech. Startek handles supply chain management, order fulfillment, everything from wrapping and shipping CDs to handling call center service, and other non-tech functions of technology companies. They've managed to do well in a tough technology environment, as tech comes back, they should continue to do well. One of the criticisms a couple of years ago was that Microsoft was 70 percent of their business, but they've gotten that down to less than 30 percent now. Startek has a great balance sheet, lots of cash."

Ralph Whitworth's major holdings

Whitworth sees himself as a value investor, but he does more than look for solid core businesses with undervalued stock prices -- he wants companies with management that he can influence. Whitworth's fund often buys sizable blocks of troubled companies so that it has the muscle to force boards to make changes that improve businesses and turn around stock prices. He sees that as his investing edge; while outside investors in troubled companies can only hope for a turnaround catalyst, Whitworth tries to put himself into a position to be that catalyst.

With that kind of investing philosophy, Whitworth ends up sitting on a few boards, even chairing them sometimes. He's on the board of two companies whose stocks are listed below, Mattel and Apria.

Aetna

"Jack Rowe is the new CEO there, and he was hired from a non-profit institution. There was a lot of skepticism. But what it tells you is the company has directors that are smart, willing to surround themselves with smart people who can do these jobs too, and he's doing a heck of a job there. The stock's gone up quite a bit, so maybe some of (the potential stock gain) is already out of it."

Apria Healthcare

"This company has a much broader customer range compared to its peers, so its risks are spread out over a broader product line and customer mix."

Mattel

"The important thing is, we recruited an outstanding management team. They've put their troubles behind them, and are back to their core business, improving margins and focusing on innovation."

Conagra

"ConAgra was in the news today because it recalled 19 million pounds of beef (Ed. Note: ConAgra shares fell almost 8 percent on July 19 after the beef recall, following a U.S. government warning that the meat may be contaminated with a bacteria that made several people sick), but I think that was an overreaction by the stock market.

"It's a wonderful company, a set of brands that has been overlooked. Management has initiated a turnaround going back the last six, seven months. They've taken concrete steps, and we think they are on a path to be an excellent turnaround over the next few years."