Hanover Insurance Group (THG), a holding that Schier has added to this year. What caught Schier's eye when he bought the shares in 2006 was Hanover's move out of life insurance, in order to focus on property and casualty insurance. He also likes Hanover's mix of statistical pricing methods usually seen in bigger insurers with the high-quality-service-oriented nature of smaller, regional insurers. The market inefficiency? Schier thinks high-quality insurers have fallen off the radar screen this year, as investors rushed to participate in the bank-stock rally. "I don't think it's a stretch for this thing to be in the mid-40s," Schier says; Hanover now trades around 37.

Another favorite is Computer Sciences (CSC), a business- and technology-service and outsourcing outfit. Schier figures that the company's extensive government contracts, including those with the U.K.'s national-health service, cushion it against the economic downturn and position it well to profit from any health-care overhaul in the U.S. CSC's full-current-year (ending March 2010) earnings per share are seen at $4.18. "It's good at keeping governments happy in very mission-critical services," Schier says, while still being able to benefit from a cyclical upswing in the economy. The stock now trades at about 44; Schier thinks it should be in the mid-50s.

He's also bought electric utilities in recent weeks, including Allete (ALE) and NorthWestern Energy (NWE). The two trade at a discount to other utilities based on his valuation metrics. Schier likes their opportunities for building transmission lines to connect wind farms to the interstate grid. Such projects are usually regulated by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, which tends to offer a more favorable regulatory environment for investors than do state commissions, he says.

He's also bought electric utilities in recent weeks, including Allete (ALE) and NorthWestern Energy (NWE). The two trade at a discount to other utilities based on his valuation metrics. Schier likes their opportunities for building transmission lines to connect wind farms to the interstate grid. Such projects are usually regulated by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, which tends to offer a more favorable regulatory environment for investors than do state commissions, he says.

Schier's bottom-up style paid huge dividends with retailer Chico's FAS (CHS), which is up by 143% this year. Schier was drawn to the strong brand name, loyal customers and "deep" discount on the shares when he started buying them last autumn, at times for less than $2 per share. "In the downdraft, a lot of guys bailed," he says. It now trades at about 10.