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Zacks Issues Sell Recommendations On the Following 4 Stocks:
CPN, S, KMB, and VRTX
CHICAGO, Nov 14, 2002 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Zacks.com releases details on a group of stocks that are part of their exclusive list of Stocks to Sell Now. These stocks are currently rated as a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell). Note that since the Zacks Ranks inception in 1980, the list of #5 ranked stocks have under-performed the S&P 500 by 89.8%. While the rest of Wall Street continued to tout stocks during the market declines of the last few years, we were telling our customers which stocks to sell in order to save themselves the misery of unrelenting losses. Among the #5 ranked stocks today we highlight the following companies: Calpine Corporation (CPN) and Sears, Roebuck and Co. (S) . Further they announced #4 Rankings (Sell) on two other widely held stocks: Kimberly-Clark Corporation (KMB) and Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (VRTX) . To see the full Zacks #5 Ranked list of Stocks to Sell Now then visit: http://stockstosellprbw.zacks.com/

Here is a synopsis of why these stocks have a Zacks Rank of 5 (Strong Sell) and should most likely be sold or avoided for the next 1 to 3 months. Note that a #5/Strong Sell rating is applied to 5% of all the stocks we rank:

Calpine Corporation (CPN) is an independent power company. While still operating in difficult market conditions, CPN reported third quarter earnings, before non-recurring items, of 38 cents a share. The result matched Wall Street's predictions but was still substantially below its year-earlier performance. CPN now sees 2002 earnings from recurring operations at 75 cents to 80 cents a share, while analysts on average expect 80 cents. Shareholders reacted positively to the news that CPN matched Wall Street, but analysts have been more restrained when it comes to earnings estimates. Over the past 7 trading days, estimates for this year have eroded slightly while next year's predictions have pulled back by approximately 14 cents. However, CPN is a company on the move that expects a much brighter future. The company continues to execute and refine a business program that was set into motion at the beginning of the year, which has shown measurable and effective results. The current environment, though, remains challenging, as reflected by the company's earnings estimates. Investors should consider holding off on a position with CPN for the time being and wait for those estimates to pick up.