Recommended by: Kevin Landis, co-manager of the Firsthand Technology Opportunities Fund (TEFQX), ranked No. 1 by Bloomberg Rankings

Likes it because: The company has lucrative businesses, including fiber optics, LCDs, and alternative energy. Landis also sees the potential for growth in Corning's (GLW) "Gorilla Glass," a thin, highly durable sheet of glass used in high-end displays for notebook PCs, TVs, and mobile phones. Landis wrote in an e-mail that he sees "great potential as the markets for smartphones and tablet PCs continue to grow."

The stock's year-to-date performance through Oct. 15: -2.7 percent