CHICAGO, June 14, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- 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): PG&E Corporation(NYSE: PCG) andGreenlight Capital Re, Ltd.(Nasdaq: GLRE). Further, Zacks announced #4 Rankings (Sell) on two other widely held stocks: Archipelago Learning, Inc.(Nasdaq: ARCL) and Quest Diagnostics Inc. (NYSE: LOW). To see the full Zacks #5 Rank List - Stocks to Sell Now visit: http://at.zacks.com/?id=92
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Since inception in 1988, the S&P 500 has outperformed the Zacks #5 Rank List of Stocks to Sell Now by 80% annually (+2% vs. +10%). 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 PCG and GLRE 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:
PG&E Corporation(NYSE: PCG) reported first-quarter earnings of 58 cents per share on May 4, which came in 22 cents behind analysts' expectations. This apart earnings missed the previous year's results by 21 cents. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year decreased 19 cents to a profit of $3.51 over the past couple of months. During that period, next year's forecast fell 2 cents to $3.73 per share.
Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd.(Nasdaq: GLRE) announced its first-quarter loss per share of $1.19 on May 2, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 9%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2011 slipped 90 cents to a profit of $1.67 per share in the last 60 days, which reflected reductions by the covering analysts. Next year's estimate fell 18 cents to $3.96 per share in the same period.
Here is a synopsis of why ARCL 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;
Archipelago Learning, Inc.(Nasdaq: ARCL) saw a 50% year-over-year decline in first-quarter earnings. On May 11, Archipelago Learningreported quarterly earnings of 4 cents per share, which lagged the Zacks Consensus Estimate by nearly 43%. The full-year average forecast dipped 9 cents to a profit of 13 cents per share in the past couple of months.
Quest Diagnostics Inc.'s (NYSE: LOW) first-quarter earnings of 34 cents per share, reported last month, missed analysts' projections by 6%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2011 slid 6 cents to $1.64 per share in the last 30 days as 18 analysts out of 21 revised downward. The average forecast for the following year declined 7 cents to $1.90 per share in that time span.
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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 +28%. 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 significantly underperformed the S&P 500 (2.8% versus +9.7%). Thus, the Zacks Rank system allows investors to truly manage portfolio trading effectively.
Visit http://www.zacks.com/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.
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