Zacks Sell List Highlights: KeyCorp, Sears Holdings Corporation, Charming Shoppes and Lowe's Companies

CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Zacks.com releases details on a group of stocks that are currently members of the exclusive Zacks #5 Rank List - Stocks to Sell Now. These stocks are currently rated as a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell): KeyCorp (NYSE: KEY) and Sears Holdings Corporation (Nasdaq: SHLD). Further, Zacks announced #4 Rankings (Sell) on two other widely held stocks: Charming Shoppes, Inc. (NASDAQ: CHRS) and Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE: LOW). To see the full Zacks #5 Rank List - Stocks to Sell Now visit: http://at.zacks.com/?id=92

Since inception in 1988, the S&P 500 has outperformed the Zacks #5 Rank List -- Stocks to Sell Now by 129% annually (+5.3% vs. +12.1%). While the rest of Wall Street continued to tout stocks during the market declines of the last few years, Zacks told investors which stocks to sell or avoid.

Here is a synopsis of why KEY and SHLD have a Zacks Rank of #5 (Strong Sell) and should most likely be sold or avoided for the next one to three months. Note that a #5 Strong Sell rating is applied to 5% of all the stocks in the Zacks Rank universe:

KeyCorp (NYSE: KEY), which recently dropped down to 52-week lows, has been the subject of downward revisions in analyst estimates. Current fourth-quarter earnings forecasts of 70 cents per share is five cents lower than last month's projections. Wall Street is calling for full-year earnings of $2.80 per share, compared to one month-ago expectations of $2.99. In mid-October, the company announced third-quarter earnings of 57 cents per share, underperforming the year-prior 76 cents and missing the consensus estimate by 20%.

Sears Holdings Corporation (Nasdaq: SHLD) has experienced a dip in analyst estimates. Earnings expectations for the year ending January 2008 stand at $7.92 per share, down eight cents from a month ago. Three months ago, Wall Street was forecasting $8.22 per share. The company posted second-quarter results in late August. Earnings per share of $1.17 were lower than the previous year's $1.74.

Here is a synopsis of why CHRS and LOW have a Zacks Rank of 4 (Sell) and should also most likely be sold or avoided for the next one to three months. Note that a #4 Sell rating is applied to 15% of all the stocks ranked by Zacks:

Charming Shoppes, Inc. (NASDAQ: CHRS) has seen its fiscal year estimates decline 20 cents to 45 cents per share over the past month, and the consensus estimate for its third quarter has fallen from a profit of 13 cents to a break-even level over the same time period. This is not surprising considering that, in early October, the company cut its third-quarter and yearly guidance. Charming Shoppes' revised outlook is in line with current analyst estimates. Third-quarter results for CHRS are scheduled to be released on Wednesday, November 21, 2007.

Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE: LOW) has been experiencing downward earnings estimates revisions ahead of its release of the fiscal third-quarter report, which is scheduled for November 19, 2007. Wall Street is currently forecasting third-quarter earnings of 43 cents per share, versus the 45-cent projection of two months ago. Estimates stand at $1.96 for the year ending January 2008, a decrease from the two months-ago expectations of $2.00. In late September, Lowe's warned that it expects to deliver earnings for the fiscal year at the low end or slightly below its prior guidance of $1.97 to 2.01.

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About the Zacks Rank

Since 1988, the Zacks Rank has proven that "Earnings estimate revisions are the most powerful force impacting stock prices." Since inception in 1988, #1 Rank stocks have generated an average annual return of +32.2%. During the 2000-2002 bear market, Zacks #1 Rank stocks gained +43.8%, while the S&P 500 tumbled -37.6%. Also note that the Zacks Rank system has just as many Strong Sell recommendations (Rank #5) as Strong Buy recommendations (Rank #1). Since 1988, Zacks Rank #5 stocks have underperformed the S&P 500 by 129% annually (+5.3% vs. +12.1%). Thus, the Zacks Rank system allows investors to truly manage portfolio trading effectively.

The performance of the Zacks Rank portfolios shown above for annual and year-to-date periods are the linked monthly total returns (price changes + dividends) of equal weighted hypothetical portfolios, consisting of those stocks with the indicated Zacks Rank, assuming monthly rebalancing and zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios. The hypothetical portfolios were created at the beginning of each month from Jan 1988 forward based on the values of the Zacks Rank available to Zacks' clients before the beginning of each month. The portfolios created monthly from 1988 through September 2006 exclude ADRS and are comprised of stocks that have the indicated Zacks Rank and were covered by at least two analysts at the time of the stocks inclusion in the portfolio. Starting in October 2006 and going forward, the portfolios are comprised of all stocks with the indicated Zacks Rank and do not exclude ADRs, which is more reflective of the list of stocks that customers will find on the Zacks web sites. 2007 returns are for the period of Jan 1 - Jun 30, 2007. These performance numbers have been audited from 1995 through 2003 by Autschuler Melovan, a division of American Express Financial.

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Source: Zacks.com