Zacks #1 Rank Top Performers: Hurco Cos., Varian Semiconductor, Guess?, THQ and Millicom International Cellular

Zacks #1 Rank Top Performers: Hurco Cos., Varian Semiconductor, Guess?, THQ and Millicom International Cellular

Zacks.com announces the latest list of top performing Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks. The stocks on the prestigious list with the highest returns last week were Hurco Companies, Inc. (NASDAQ: HURC), Varian Semiconductor Equipment Associates, Inc. (NASDAQ: VSEA), Guess?, Inc. (NYSE: GES), THQ Inc. (NASDAQ: THQI) and Millicom International Cellular S.A. (NASDAQ: MICC). Each of these stocks easily outperformed the S&P 500.

Stocks ranked #1 (Strong Buy) by Zacks have produced an average annual return of +31.8% since inception in 1988. During the 2000-2002 bear market, Zacks #1 Rank stocks gained 43.8% while the S&P 500 tumbled 37.6%. To learn more about the Zacks Rank, go to http://at.zacks.com/?id=3172.

Here is a synopsis of the last week’s best performing Zacks #1 Rank stocks.

Hurco Companies, Inc. (NASDAQ: HURC) announced fiscal first-quarter earnings per share of 84 cents on Feb 16 with sales and service fees of $46.9 million. EPS jumped from 48 cents in the year-earlier period and bettered the consensus by approximately 42.4%. Sales and service fees improved 47% year over year, reflecting a significant improvement in demand, especially in European markets, and increased shipments of its larger and more highly-priced machines in those markets. New orders booked were up 25%.

Shares of Hurco Companies jumped 23.1% last week and reached a 52-week high on Feb 16. Hurco is an industrial technology company that designs and produces software and machine tools for the metal cutting and metal forming industry.

Varian Semiconductor Equipment Associates, Inc. (NASDAQ: VSEA) was one of the best-performing Zacks #1 Rank companies last week with a gain of 19.8%. The producer of ion implantation equipment got a boost last week when rival Applied Materials announced that it would stop future development of beamline implant products for semiconductor manufacturing. It will also close the operations of its Applied Implant Technologies group based in Horsham, England. Varian Semiconductor is expected to benefit from this development, and reached 52-week highs on both Feb 15 and Feb 16.

For its fiscal first quarter, Varian Semiconductor reported earnings per share of 66 cents, beating the consensus by almost 12% and substantially improving upon the year-earlier result. Total revenue enhanced to $225.6 million from $160.9 million. Analysts have raised their earnings estimates for the year ending September 2007 by approximately 11.7% over the past month.

Guess?, Inc. (NYSE: GES) announced strong fourth quarter results last week, helping this Zacks #1 Rank company rise 14.7% and reach a fresh 52-week high on Feb 16. The clothing retailer earned 99 cents per share in the quarter, compared to 57 cents a year earlier, which bettered the consensus by 7.6%. Total net revenue advanced 25.2% to $346.4 million from $276.6 million. For the full year, earnings per share advanced 105% while revenues moved forward 27%.

Guess stated that the main focus in 2007 and beyond is the globalization of its brands. For the fiscal year ending Feb 2, 2008, the company expects net revenues between $1.45 billion and $1.5 billion, with diluted earnings per share between $3.30 and $3.40. Guess? also announced that its Board approved a two-for-one stock split of its common stock.

THQ Inc. (NASDAQ: THQI) was a top-performing Zacks #1 Rank stock last week with an advance of 12.7%. The video game company recently announced that Titan Quest™: Immortal Throne ™ reached the gold master stage of development and is entering manufacturing. The game is scheduled to ship to retail outlets worldwide on Mar 5. Titan Quest: Immortal Throne is the first expansion to the award-winning action role playing game Titan Quest.

Earlier this month, THQ reported fiscal third quarter net sales that advanced 33% to $475.7 million, compared to $357.8 million a year earlier. Earnings per share also improved on a year-over-year basis. Sales were driven by WWE® SmackDown® vs. Raw® 2007, Cars, Avatar, SpongeBob Squarepants and Destroy All Humans! ® 2. The company now owns six well-established franchises with one million plus unit sales for each, which it plans to sequel and extend well into the future.

Shares of Millicom International Cellular S.A. (NASDAQ: MICC) increased 12.4% last week after the global telecommunications group announced a solid fourth-quarter performance. Earnings per share of 50 cents advanced more than 200% year-over-year, while sales of $544 million improved almost 100% from $273 million.

On Feb 16, Millicom International Cellular was featured as the Momentum Stock of the Day at Zacks.com thanks to a breakout after its strong quarterly report. The company regained momentum that was lost in the weeks leading up to its December earnings report.

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 +31.8%. 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 143.6% annually (+4.8% vs. +11.8%). Thus, the Zacks Rank system allows investors to truly manage portfolio trading effectively.

To view the current Zacks #1 Rank List and to see additional Zacks Rank resources, go to http://at.zacks.com/?id=3173.

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(a)The Zacks Performance Rank performance is the total return of equal weighted simulated portfolios consisting of those stocks with the indicated Zacks Rank net of fees. Results reflect the reinvestment of dividends and other earnings. Simulated results do not represent actual trading and may not reflect the impact that economic and market factors might have had on decision-making if an adviser were actually managing a client’s money.

(b)The S&P 500 Index (”S&P 500″) is a well-known, unmanaged index of the prices of 500 large-company common stocks selected by Standard & Poor’s. The S&P 500 includes the reinvestment of all dividends, no transaction costs, and represents the gross returns before management fees.

Disclaimer: Past performance does not guarantee future results. Investors should always research companies and securities before making any investments. Nothing herein should be construed as an offer or solicitation to buy or sell any security.
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