CHICAGO, Jan. 11, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Zacks.com releases details on a group of stocks that are currently members of the exclusive Zacks #5 Rank List – Stocks to Sell Now. These stocks are currently rated as a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell): Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) and J.C. Penney Company, Inc. (NYSE:JCP). Further, Zacks announced #4 Rankings (Sell) on two other widely held stocks: The Fresh Market Inc (NASDAQ:TFM) and KAR Auction Services Inc (NYSE:KAR).

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To see the full Zacks #5 Rank List - Stocks to Sell Now visit: http://at.zacks.com/?id=92

Since inception in 1988, the S&P 500 has outperformed the Zacks #5 Rank List of Stocks to Sell Now by 80% annually (+2% vs. +10%). While the rest of Wall Street continued to tout stocks during the market declines of the last few years, Zacks told investors which stocks to sell or avoid.   

Here is a synopsis of why BBY and JCP have a Zacks Rank of #5 (Strong Sell) and should most likely be sold or avoided for the next one to three months. Note that a #5 Strong Sell rating is applied to 5% of all the stocks in the Zacks Rank universe:

Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) announced third -quarter profit of 3 cents per share on November 20 which came behind the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 9 cents. The diluted earnings per share also fell by 93.62% on a year-over-year basis. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year slipped 3 cents per share to $2.45 in the last 30 days. Next year's estimate also dipped 5 cents per share to $2.19 per share in that time span.

J.C. Penney Company, Inc. (NYSE:JCP) posted a third -quarter loss of 93 cents per share on November 12, which came in $1.01 wider than the average forecast. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2012 fell to a loss of $1.30 per share from $1.08 over the past month with 3 out of 9 covering analysts slashed forecasts. Next year's forecasts slipped 23 cents to a loss of 5 cents per share in the same time span.

Here is a synopsis of why TFM and KAR have a Zacks Rank of 4 (Sell) and should also most likely be sold or avoided for the next one to three months. Note that a #4 Sell rating is applied to 15% of all the stocks ranked by Zacks;

The Fresh Market Inc (NASDAQ:TFM) third -quarter profit of 23 cents per share, posted on November 28, lagged analysts projections by nearly 11.54%. For 2012, the Zacks Consensus Estimate moved down 3 cents in the last 60 days as none out of the 15 covering analysts cut back on forecasts. The forecast for next year slid 5 cents to $1.69 per share in the same time span.

KAR Auction Services Inc (NYSE:KAR) reported a third-quarter profit of 19 cents per share on November 7, that fell 24.0% short of the Zacks Consensus Estimate. The full-year average forecast is currently pegged at 90 cents per share, compared with the last 60 days projection of 92 cents. Next year's forecast dropped 3 cents per share in the same period.

Truly taking advantage of the Zacks Rank requires the understanding of how it works.  The free special report; "Zacks Rank Guide: Harnessing the Power of Earnings Estimate Revisions" is available to provide this insightful background. Download a free copy now to prosper in the years to come at http://at.zacks.com/?id=93

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 +28%. 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 significantly underperformed the S&P 500 (2.8% versus +9.7%). Thus, the Zacks Rank system allows investors to truly manage portfolio trading effectively.

Visit http://www.zacks.com/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.

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