Top Performing Stocks for the Week Ended Sep 12

The five best performing stocks on the Zacks #1 Rank List last week were: Cedar Fair Entertainment Company (FUN - Snapshot Report), True Religion Apparel, Inc. (TRLG - Snapshot Report), Fuel Systems Solutions, Inc. (FSYS - Snapshot Report), G-III Apparel Group, Ltd. (GIII - Snapshot Report) and ITT Educational Services, Inc. (ESI - Analyst Report).

Cedar Fair Entertainment Company (FUN - Snapshot Report) announced last week that 2008 revenues through Labor Day were up 3% to $852 million. In addition, attendance was also up 3% to 547,000 visits. On a same-park basis, revenues through Labor Day advanced 5%. FUN said it is cautiously optimistic that momentum during the peak vacation months of July and August will continue into the Fall season. The company reaffirmed its full-year revenue outlook of $990 million to $1.02 billion.

Shares of the regional amusement and water parks company moved forward by 6.7% last week. Earnings estimates for this year and next have improved over the past 2 months by 8.2% and 11.4%, respectively.

True Religion Apparel, Inc. (TRLG - Snapshot Report) continues to perform well against a difficult economic backdrop. Shares of the premium jeans maker were up approximately 6.1% last week, which was enough to make it one of the top performing Zacks #1 Rank companies. Earnings estimates for this year and next have advanced 5.7% and 4.7%, respectively, over the past 2 months. In addition, analysts currently predict that next year's profit will advance almost 22% from this year.

True Religion Apparel's second-quarter performance demonstrated why this is one of the better-performing retailers at the moment. The company reported earnings per share of 39 cents early last month, marking a surprise of almost 18.2% over the consensus. Net sales jumped 79% to $64.2 million. Most encouraging in the quarter was its full-year earnings guidance, which was increased to a range between $1.61 and $1.65 from the previous guidance of $1.52 to $1.56. Net sales are now expected between $242 million and $247 million, accounting for a gain of 40% to 43% over that of 2007. TRLG also raised its targeted 2008 store count to 39 by the end of the year; up 4 stores from its previous target.

The price of oil may be well off its highs at the moment, but that hasn't dampened enthusiasm for Fuel Systems Solutions, Inc. (FSYS - Snapshot Report). Shares of the company moved forward by about 5.5% last week. Over the past 2 months, analysts have raised earnings estimates for this year by 27.5% and for next year by 31.5%. Underscoring the potential of alternative energy moving forward, analysts expect next year's profit to soar by more than 30% over this year.

In its second quarter, which was reported in early August, FSYS announced revenue of $98.3 million, marking a 50% jump from the previous year's $65.6 million. The company attributed this to the rapidly-expanding demand for alternatives to petroleum for fueling vehicles. Meanwhile, earnings per share topped both the consensus and year-ago result. The company also increased its 2008 consolidated revenue outlook to $350 million.

Earnings estimates for G-III Apparel Group, Ltd. (GIII - Snapshot Report) have moved higher recently after the clothing retailer announced fiscal second-quarter results on Sep 9. Analyst expectations for this fiscal year and next are up 1.5% and 1.3%, respectively, over the past week. Furthermore, estimates have also moved higher from 3 months ago by 8.6% and 6%. The company was a top-performing Zacks #1 Rank last week as shares gained 5.2%.

GIII lost 23 cents per share in its fiscal second quarter, which was steeper than the year-ago loss due to recent acquisitions. However, that result was narrower than the consensus' loss estimate by 2 cents. Net sales increased by 35% to $113.5 million from $83.9 million. The company believes it is well positioned for the second half, and expects full fiscal year net sales of approximately $730 million and earnings per share between $1.35 and $1.40.

ITT Educational Services, Inc. (ESI - Analyst Report) was featured as an Aggressive Growth Stock of the Day at Zacks.com on Monday. The company made the Zacks #1 Rank Top Performers List for the week ended Sep 12 with shares that advanced 4.7% in a difficult week. Over the past 2 months, earnings estimates for this year are up 7.2%, while expectations for next year advanced 7.6%.

ESI reported that new student enrollment increased by 22.5% in the second quarter, while total student enrollment advanced 12.1%. These factors helped the company put together a strong performance, which included earnings per share of $1.20 that advanced year over year from 87 cents. That marked a surprise of 16.5% over the consensus. Sales improved by almost 14% to $246.4 million from $217 million. ESI also raised its EPS goal for the year. Analysts currently expect next year's EPS to increase almost 10% from this year.