Top Performer for Friday

Western Refining, Inc. (WNR - Snapshot Report) has had to battle volatility in oil prices, but was able to report fourth-quarter earnings per share, excluding items, that beat both the consensus and year-ago result.

Furthermore, the independent refiner believes it is positioned for a more profitable future, despite a low margin refining environment.

Shares of the company are up by more than 11% this afternoon, which makes it one of the top-performing Zacks #1 Rank companies.

Also in the quarter, WNR announced that cash flow from operations reached $115.5 million, compared to a year-ago loss, while net sales declined more than 30% to $1.66 billion.

"With the improvements we have made at our refineries and the robust margins we have experienced to date in the quarter, the first quarter of 2009 has the potential to be one of our most profitable quarters," stated WNR CEO Paul Foster.

Earnings estimates for this year are approximately 119% better than 2 months ago. Meanwhile, expectations for the first quarter have moved to a profit from a loss in that timeframe.

WNR is 1 of 3 companies from the oil: refining & marketing industry on today's Zacks #1 Rank List, which includes 191 stocks. The other companies are Ferrellgas Partners, L.P. (FGP - Analyst Report) and Syntroleum Corporation (SYNM - Snapshot Report).