The Ride Doesn’t Stop Here

The first quarter of 2011 was a bumpy one for investors. After a strong start to the year, political strife in Libya and the Middle East made the world markets jittery and caused oil prices to spike. And the devastating earthquake and tsunami in Japan was the straw that really broke the market’s back, sending the major indices plummeting. However, since the March 16 correction low, stocks made a steady march higher.

When all was said and done, the Dow ended the first quarter up 5.56%, the S&P 500 rose 4.24%, and the Nasdaq notched a 3.33% gain. Not too shabby, but if you’re a growth investor, we certainly hope you had some bigger gains in individual stocks to write home about. Our InvestorPlace experts certainly did. In fact, their top stock picks for the quarter brought in three-month returns ranging from 35% to 108% — a far cry from the low-single-digit gains put in by the major indices. What’s even better about these stock picks, though, is that their run does not appear to be over. In fact, we’re quite confident that their Q2 performance will be just as memorable.

Here are our top stock picks from Q1:

TranS1 (TSON) Q1 Return: 108%

Hilary Kramer, Editor, Breakout Stocks Under $5

My top stock pick for Q1, TranS1 Inc. (NASDAQ: TSON), broke out for eye-popping 108% gains in the first quarter on positive developments for its spinal fusion system. The under-$5 health care stock doubled after receiving FDA approval of Axia LIF, a revolutionary technique that costs less than traditional methods and requires less recovery time for patients. The company also made progress in securing insurance coverage for the procedure.

TSON has the potential to break out even further as the company ramps up for a full launch of its technology in the second half of the year and continues to pursue insurance coverage.

Heritage-Crystal Clean (HCCI) Q1 Return: 42%

Nancy Zambell, Editor, Buried Treasures Under $10

Nothing goes to waste. Or as my mother used to say, “Don’t throw that away; we can use it for something!” And that’s the motto of Heritage-Crystal Clean (NASDAQ: HCCI). Our shares of HCCI were up about 42% in the first quarter.

When founded more than 20 years ago, the company collected used lubricating oil, recycled it and sold it as an industrial fuel. It has greatly expanded its services since then and is now the second-largest provider of parts-cleaning services in the country. HCCI also transports and disposes containerized waste, and provides vacuum service and oil recovery services to remove oil, water and sediment from wastewater pre-treatment devices in select locations.

HCCI’s latest initiative is entry into a $6 billion market — oil re-refining, the process of turning used oil into usable, clean oil. It’s new re-refinery should be operating by the end of 2011, or early 2012, and is estimated to generate about $90 million in sales annually. This is a great opportunity for the company, and I also think it could be a possible takeover target.

Baidu (BIDU) Q1 Return: 41%

Louis Navellier, Editor, Blue Chip Growth

My top stock for the first quarter was the Chinese search engine company Baidu Inc. (NASDAQ: BIDU). From Jan. 3 to March 31, the stock surged a fantastic 41%! I first recommended the stock in October 2009, and since joining the Buy List Baidu has made a total return of 261%.

The stock is consistently included in my Blue Chip Growth Top 5 Stocks list, most recently in the April issue. Considering China’s growing Internet usage and Baidu’s plans to expand into different areas of the mobile market, this stock is sure to continue to pull in big gains.

NetEase.com (NTSE) Q1 Return: 35%

Robert Hsu, Editor, China Strategy

My top pick for the first quarter was NetEase.com (NASDAQ: NTES), one of China’s leading online gaming companies and web portals, as well as the only licensed operator of Blizzard’s popular online game World of Warcraft in China. This high-flying stock soared a whopping 35% in the first quarter, and is up more than 10% in just the past two weeks!

But don’t let those gains discourage you from initiating a new position. I believe there is still upside left in this top stock and should give my China Strategy subscribers another 25% to 45% in profits within the next several months, especially as the company recently announced the official release of StarCraft II, another popular online game, to China users.