Rising Tide Aids Fidelity Export Fund; Home Builders Strong; Fund finds more outfits with good fundamentals and fewer bargain prices.(MUTUAL FUNDS)(MUTUAL FUND PROFILE)

Byline: PAUL KATZEFF

For Timothy Cohen, the economic recovery means less shopping for stocks in the bargain bin.

His $1.15 billion Fidelity Export & Multinational Fund looks for growth stocks with good valuations. These days he can find more firms poised for growth without beaten-down values.

"In late 2002, I found lots of cheap stocks," Cohen said. "There were cyclicals, turnarounds, companies with leveraged balance sheets. Some were threatened with bankruptcy. Some were threatened by bad headlines. They were cheap in comparison to what their earnings power could be in an upturn."

Today he finds growth at a reasonable price in stronger places.

"I'm not buying as many smaller caps," he said. "I'm not buying as many turnarounds. I'm not buying as much in cyclicals."

Reflecting its name, Cohen's fund invests mainly in exporters and multinationals. But he is allowed to invest some assets in firms with a domestic focus, too. And he has about 20% of assets in such names. Those are largely in three groups: utilities, regional banks and telecom services.