Zacks Bull and Bear of the Day Highlights: Questar, Human Genome Sciences, Whole Foods Market, The Kroger Company and Supervalu

For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – November 1, 2011 – Zacks Equity Research highlights Questar Corp. (STR - Analyst Report) as the Bull of the Day and Human Genome Sciences Inc. ( HGSI - Analyst Report) as the Bear of the Day. In addition, Zacks Equity Research provides analysis on Whole Foods Market Inc. ( WFM - Analyst Report), The Kroger Company (KR - Analyst Report) and Supervalu Inc. (SVU - Analyst Report).

Full analysis of all these stocks is available at http://at.zacks.com/?id=2678.

Here is a synopsis of all five stocks:

Bull of the Day:

Buoyed by robust operating results and an enhanced guidance by management, we are upgrading Questar Corp. (STR - Analyst Report) to Outperform from Neutral. We believe the company will be able to generate meaningful earnings and dividend growth in the coming years through strong operational performances by its business units.

Other positives in the Questar story include its sole emphasis on natural gas markets, its focus on long-term contracts and the efficient managerial team. Ongoing gains from cost cutting initiatives add to the bullish sentiment.

Going forward, we believe that Questar's outlook is promising and it offers attractive long-term upside potential for investors. As such, we rate shares of Questar as an attractive investment. Our $23 price objective reflects a 2011 P/E multiple of 20.4x.

Bear of the Day:

We are downgrading Human Genome Sciences Inc. ( HGSI - Analyst Report) to Underperform from Neutral following the disappointing third quarter 2011 results reported by the company. The company suffered a wider-than-expected loss due to lower revenues. The most alarming factor was the below-par showing of Human Genome's recently launched lupus drug, Benlysta.

Following the lackluster showing, we have increased our loss per share estimates for 2011 and 2012. Moreover, management has pushed back its aim of turning profitable by a year to 2014.

In view of these headwinds, we see little reason for investors to hold on to the stock at current levels. Our target price is $10.00.

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Earnings Preview: Whole Foods

Whole Foods Market Inc. ( WFM - Analyst Report), a leading natural and organic foods supermarket, is scheduled to report its fourth-quarter 2011 financial results after the bell on Wednesday, November 2, 2011. The current Zacks Consensus Estimate for the quarter is 41 cents a share. The Zacks Consensus estimates revenue at $2,360 million for the quarter under discussion.

Guidance

Whole Foods at its last earnings call hinted an increase of 12.2–12.4% in total sales, driven by an 8.5–8.7% rise in comparable-store sales and an 8.3–8.6% growth in identical-store sales in fiscal 2011. Management guided earnings in the range of $1.91 to $1.92 per share for fiscal 2011.

The company also provided its initial fiscal 2012 outlook. Whole Foods expects an increase of 13–15% in total sales, underpinned by a 6.8–8.8% rise in comparable-store sales and a 6.5–8.5% growth. The company projected earnings between $2.21 and $2.26 per share for fiscal 2012.

Fourth-Quarter 2011 Zacks Consensus

The analysts considered by Zacks, expect Whole Foods to post fourth-quarter 2011 earnings of 41 cents a share. The current Zacks Consensus Estimate reflects a growth of 24.2% from the prior-year quarter’s earnings. The current Zacks Consensus Estimate for the quarter ranges between 39 cents and 43 cents a share.

Zacks Agreement & Magnitude

Of the 19 analysts following the stock, only 1 analyst has revised the estimate upward and none has lowered theirs in the last 30 days, thereby leaving no significant impact on the Zacks Consensus Estimate. In the last 7 days, none of the analysts has revisited the estimates, keeping the Zacks Consensus Estimate unchanged.

Bullish on Whole Foods

Being one of the leading natural and organic foods supermarkets, Whole Foods with a strong brand image, and marketing and merchandising expertise, offers investors one of the strongest growth profiles in the industry. The stock is poised to surge once the economy revives and the demand for healthier and natural food improves.

Stringent cost-control measures, effective inventory management, and improved store-level performance are driving earnings growth. Whole Foods is also revamping its pricing strategy and concentrating more on value offerings, while maintaining healthy margins. In the last five fiscal years, gross margin has been in the range of 34% to 34.9%.

Whole Foods has been spurring its sales through new store openings, acquisitions and comparable store sales growth. The company raised its fiscal 2011 outlook, and expects sales growth in the band of 12.2% to 12.4% and its bottom line to increase 34%. Moreover, a prudent capital investment is also translating into improved cash flows with a lower debt level and healthy balance sheet.

Whole Foods’ strong fundamentals and favorable outlook compel us to hold our bullish stance on the stock even in a dwindling market. We currently, maintain our long-term “Outperform” recommendation on the stock. Whole Foods, which faces stiff competition from other supermarket operators such as The Kroger Company (KR - Analyst Report) and Supervalu Inc. (SVU - Analyst Report), holds a Zacks #1 Rank, which translates into a short-term ‘Strong Buy’ rating.

Get the full analysis of all these stocks by going to http://at.zacks.com/?id=2649.

About the Bull and Bear of the Day

Every day, the analysts at Zacks Equity Research select two stocks that are likely to outperform (Bull) or underperform (Bear) the markets over the next 3-6 months.

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Read the full analyst report on STR

Read the full analyst report on HGSI

Read the full analyst report on WFM

Read the full analyst report on KR

Read the full analyst report on SVU