Tom Forester, whose Forester Value fund has an exceptional long-term track record, recently offered his “five perfect stocks for 2011”.

“Time will tell just how close to perfection his picks are,” writes MoneyWatch’s Conrad DeAenlle, “but Forester … offers an interesting list of companies that are hiding in plain sight — mostly household names whose neglect or avoidance by investors leaves them trading at bargain valuations. Three of the five companies have the added quirk of being stalwarts of the technology sector, not the sort of place where investors usually go to find value.”

Forester tends to outperform in down environments and lag in up markets — his was the lone long-equity fund to post positive returns in 2008, but it has lagged 99% of peers in 2010. Among his “perfect stocks” for next year: Microsoft, whose Windows 7 has been a “home run”, and Best Buy, which he thinks will benefit from strong holiday sales and the fall of Circuit City, one of its big competitors.