Why Our 2015 Top Stock Picks Feature Hot Blue Chips FB, GOOG, AAPL

Best InvestmentsWhile our 2015 top stock picks tend to feature small-cap stocks with explosive growth, that doesn't mean the only path to gains is sitting on a risky small-cap and hoping for a pop.

In fact, even with the major market indices running into trouble recently, what with the Chinese stock market crash and the uneasiness in Europe, blue-chip stocks have scored some key wins.

One familiar name is Facebook Inc. (Nasdaq: FB). FB stock is up 22% this year. It's doing much the same as it has always done since its IPO, and it's up 150% since it debuted on the Nasdaq in 2012.

It continues to revel in a massive user base of over a billion monthly active users - larger than any other social media company out there. And to this point it has pursued a winning M&A strategy, with 49 acquisitions in the last five years.

"Every time I look at, or think about, what Facebook is doing strategically, I can't help but get excited - feeling as if this is a chance to buy a really good stock at a really good price point," Money Morning Capital Wave Strategist Shah Gilani said. "I believe Facebook's acquisition strategy has been great. As long as [CEO Mark Zuckerberg] keeps using his stock as currency to buy into the future, I'm behind him."

Joining FB stock as a red-hot blue chip this year is Google Inc. (Nasdaq: GOOG, GOOGL). A lot of GOOG stock's big gains came from a one-day 16% jolt it experienced when it crushed earnings on July 17.

And of course, there is Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL) stock. AAPL stock has lost some ground following earnings last week, but it still is up a rather impressive 11% this year. The recent 5% beating AAPL stock took came when Apple missed iPhone sales forecasts and lowered guidance.

But with nearly $203 billion in cash and its historically consistent earnings beats, it's hard to take Wall Street seriously on this one sell-off.

"Apple has spoiled investors with spectacular earnings beats," Money Morning Associate Editor David Zeiler said. "The AAPL stock sell-off is basically investors throwing a tantrum because they only got two scoops of ice cream instead of three."

For a list of our top 10 2015 top stock picks, check out the table below:

Money Morning's Top Stocks 2015

Here are our top 10 stock picks for year-to-date gains as of the July 30 close.

Name Symbol 2015 Gain %
Prothena Corp. Plc PRTA 221.3
Ambarella Inc. AMBA 128.3
Novavax Inc. NVAX 104.2
Thoratec Corp. THOR 95.0
Oncothyreon Inc. ONTY 84.2
Alon USA Energy Inc. ALJ 46.1
JD.com Inc. JD 44.2
Lannett Co. Inc. LCI 38.8
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. REGN 33.4
Skyworks Solutions Inc. SWKS 33.1

Sources: Google Finance, Money Morning Staff Research
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