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Zacks Ranks Top Performing Stock Analysts for 2005

Chicago,IL-March 22, 2006- Despite their flaws, stock analysts are generally very knowledgeable about the companies and industries they cover. Among all of the data and information contained in their research reports, are two key items that are especially valuable to investors. One is their earnings estimates, numbers which provide guidance to what a company will earn. Over the years, revisions to earnings estimates have been reliable predictors of a stock’s price movement. The second key piece of information analysts provide is their stock recommendations. “Many investors take analyst recommendations very seriously,” says Adam Cohen, Senior Vice President Quantitative Consulting, at Zacks Investment Research, Inc. “The weight of their recommendations is often underscored when an analyst changes his or her opinion of a stock and its price immediately rises or falls.”

Zacks Investment Research analyzes the performance of the stock recommendations made by brokerage analysts. Those who are objectively determined to be at the top of their game for the industries they cover, receive the prestigious title of “All Star”. Analyst performance is measured by the return an investor would have achieved if they followed the analyst’s recommendations.” Zacks then ranks them with a 1-5 star rating, with 5 stars being the best.

The Top 10, 5 Star Analysts for 2005 include...
Analyst Industry Return Brokerage Firm Industry Average
Michael Shonstrom Computer Software 176.5% Emerging Growth Equities, Ltd. 6.42%
William Tanner Drugs 124.78% Leerink, Swann & Company 32.66%
Brain Samuels Oil: Exploration & Production 119.42% C.K. Cooper & Company 32.66%
Howard Halpern Foods 106.89% Taglich Brothers, Inc. 4.86%
Colin Gillis Oil: Services 103.53%

Canaccord Adams

34.13%
Amir Arif Oil: Exploration & Production 100.59% Friedman, Billings, Ramsey & Co. 32.66%
Les Childress Oil: Exploration & Production 98.48% J.M. Dutton & Associates 32.66%
Thomas Wei Drugs 88.07% Piper Jaffray 0.903%
Justin Cable Computer Software 84.03% B. Riley & Company 6.42%
Andrew Fein Biotechnology 82.55% Formerly with Leerink Swann & Co. 3.75%

The Top 5, 5 Star Analysts for the last 3 years include...

Analyst Industry 3 Year Avg. Return Brokerage Firm Industry Average
Howard Halpern Foods 87.50% Taglich Brothers, Inc 14.27%
Ronald Mills Oil: Exploration & Production 56.11% Johnson Rice 23.71%
Jim Fowler Savings & Loan 54.30% JMP Securities 9.8%
Irene Haas Oil: Exploration & Production 52.68% Sanders, Morris, Harris 23.71%
Paul Forward Coal 48.85

Stifel Nicolaus Co.

24.97%

The Zacks All Star Analyst Survey tracks the performance of approximately 2300 individual Wall Street analysts, employed by 150 brokerage firms. To be eligible for star rankings in an industry, analysts must have made at least 3 simultaneous recommendations for companies within that industry during the year. The Zacks Stars are assigned to an analyst in an industry based on the performance of a hypothetical model portfolio which includes, at any time, all stocks in the industry rated by the analyst.  All stocks in an analyst’s portfolio are given equal weight. It is assumed that their portfolio begins each year with an equal amount of money invested in each of the stocks recommended by the analyst at the beginning of the year. Portfolio holdings are rebalanced to equally weighted positions at the end of trading days on which a stock recommendation is changed in the portfolio. Portfolio returns include capital gains and dividends. To learn which brokerage analysts are the best in their field and which stocks they are recommending today, see the Zacks All Star Analyst survey online at http://www.zacks.com/research/allstar/index.php where you can search them by any criteria.

Zacks Investment Research, Inc., the Chicago based provider of market data, has been conducting this survey since 1993. From this survey, Zacks has also created a portfolio comprised of stocks recommended as a Buy from at least 5 or more All Star Analysts (http://www.zacks.com/portfolios/allstar/index.php). To learn more about Zacks Investment Research go to http://www.zacks.com.