Buy these 23 small- and mid-cap stocks that will surprisingly beat Wall Street’s first-quarter earnings expectations, according to Bank of America

• Bank of America says the economy has entered the downturn’s final and deeper stage. 
• Historically, high-quality, cash-generating stocks perform best in this phase.
• Below are 23 stocks that beat expectations in the last quarter and are expected to do it again.  

‘A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush’ is the theme Bank of America is touting during this earnings season, according to an April 14 note from the equity and quant strategy team led by Savita Subramanian.

The recent bank failures that began in early March brought with them credit risk and renewed recessionary fears. This put investors back on the defensive after they started the year risk-on before scurrying back to risk-off, according to another note by equity and quant strategist Jill Carey Hall. A continued high-inflation environment is also adding to the unease.