(FORTUNE Magazine) – Nearly three months after we introduced the FORTUNE 40 in our annual Retirement Guide (see "Value and Vroom: The Fortune 40" on fortune.com), our diversified stock and bond portfolio is up a modest 2.1%. However, that handily outpaces the return of our benchmark, the S&P 500-stock index, which has fallen 2.0%.

Credit strong showings in all asset classes. Our top performer so far is Steris (STE, $26), a mid-cap stock that's rocketed 49%. Thanks to growing demand from scientific and industrial customers, the maker of sterilization and infection-prevention products recently raised its quarterly profit forecasts. In the large-cap arena, the robust cash flow and product pipeline at Johnson & Johnson (JNJ, $58) has helped the stock mount a big recovery after getting drubbed in July when the government initiated an investigation into practices at one of its drug factories. It's up a healthy 40%.

Overseas, Novartis (NVS, $41) has surged 19%, primarily because the company's drug for irritable-bowel syndrome won approval for sale in the U.S. nearly two years earlier than expected. Analysts say the drug, Zelnorm, could generate more than $1 billion in annual sales. Finally, our best-performing bond fund, Fremont Bond, has provided much-needed stability during these stormy times, rising 3% on top of its generous yield.

Admittedly, not every pick has been a winner. Bisys Group (BSG, $16), which provides back-office support services for financial firms, has fallen a painful 37%. Citing a bear market-inspired dropoff in the mutual fund business, the company cut its first-quarter profit forecast in late September. Kroger (KR, $13) has dropped 29%. The grocery giant missed profit expectations and lowered its profit outlook for the year. --David Stires