Schaeffer's Market Leaders and Laggards Features American Pharmaceutical Partners, Johnson & Johnson, Noble Energy, Select Sector SPDRs Utility Fund, and SBC Communications.

CINCINNATI -- Among the stocks featured in the April 26 edition of Schaeffer's Market Leaders and Laggards are American Pharmaceutical Partners (NASDAQ:APPX), Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ), Noble Energy (NYSE:NBL), Select Sector SPDRs Utility Fund (AMEX:XLU), and SBC Communications (NYSE:SBC). Schaeffer's Market Leaders and Laggards screener is just one of the many features written everyday at http://www.SchaeffersResearch.com - the home of Bernie Schaeffer and Schaeffer's Investment Research. The information used to compile this commentary is derived from the Schaeffer's Equity Scorecard Filter. Below is a quick overview of some of the heavy hitters that are seeing some particularly high or low rankings. For a complete list of the stocks on our High/Low Schaeffer's Equity Scorecard Filter, sign up for an unlimited access free trial to Schaeffer's Gold. http://www.SchaeffersResearch.com/redirect.aspx?CODE=PRGLD2M&PAGE=1 .

Schaeffer's Market Leaders and Laggards for Tuesday, April 26, 2005:

American Pharmaceutical Partners - Ranking 8.0

American Pharmaceutical Partners (NASDAQ:APPX) develops, manufactures, and markets injectable pharmaceutical products in three basic forms: liquid, powder, and lyophilized or freeze-dried. Its products are generally used in hospitals, long-term care facilities, alternate-care sites and clinics within North America. The security has rallied since late October, using the support of its 10-week moving average. The shares are also resting on support at their 20-day trendline. However, investors remain extremely skeptical of the security's technical strength. Options players have loaded up on the stock's puts, pushing its Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) up to 1.15. This lofty reading is higher than 92 percent of all those taken during the past 52 weeks. And while short interest dropped by 14 percent in March (yep, we're still waiting for the NASDAQ to report short-interest data), more than 25 percent of the security's float has been sold short. A short-squeeze situation could result in a sharp rise in the shares as these positions are unraveled. The stock has earned a Schaeffer's Equity Scorecard ranking of 8.0 out of 10, indicating that additional gain may still be in the cards for APPX. Looking ahead, the company reports earnings before the open on May 4, with analysts forecasting a gain of 31 cents per share. This estimate is nearly double the stock's year-ago gain of 16 cents per share. Furthermore, APPX has surpassed the consensus estimate in four of the past five quarters.

Click on the following link to see the Weekly Chart of APPX since October 2004 with 10-Week Moving Average: http://www.schaeffersresearch.com/wire?ID=13038 .

Johnson & Johnson - Ranking 8.0

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) almost needs no introduction. The "world's most comprehensive and broadly based manufacturer of health care products" makes our list of leaders today thanks to very strong technicals and some eye-catching sentiment. For more than a year, JNJ has ridden the support of its monthly trendlines, rising steadily from a low close of 50 last March to hit a peak on April 15 just shy of 70, a clean 40-percent gain. Nevertheless, there are definite indications that money is still waiting on the sidelines, always a good sign. The stock's short-interest ratio is 5.91 days to cover, enough to push the price up a little if any news comes along to shake up the shorts. The SOIR for JNJ is 1.15, and at first glance this appears unremarkable, simply indicating that puts slightly outnumber calls in the front three months of options. But this reading lies in the 97th percentile, making it far from innocuous; in the past year, investors have rarely been more pessimistic than they are right now. While pessimism toward a poorly performing stock is right and proper, pessimism towards to stellar stock like JNJ makes it one to watch.

Click on the following link to see the Weekly Chart of JNJ since March 2004 with 10-Week and 20-Week Moving Averages: http://www.schaeffersresearch.com/wire?ID=13038 .

Noble Energy - Ranking 9.0

Noble Energy (NYSE:NBL) has rebounded off support at the 63 level, site of a 50-percent retracement of the security's rally from its January low to its April high. This bounce off support has carried the shares back above support at its 10-day and 20-day moving averages. The equity has steadily sprinted higher along the stellar support of its ascending 10-month moving average for almost two years. Traders, on the other hand, believe that NBL has finally come to the end of its winning ways. The stock's current SOIR of 0.41 is higher than three-quarters of the readings taken during the past 12 months. What's more, short interest continues to hover near a multi-year high, with more than 11 percent of the security's float sold short. An unwinding of these bearish bets could fuel additional gains in the shares. NBL currently has a Schaeffer's Equity Scorecard ranking of 9.0 out of 10. On the fundamental front, NBL will light up the earnings confessional on May 4 before the open. Analysts are predicting a gain of $1.59 per share, besting its year-ago profit by 29 cents. What's more, NBL has surpassed the consensus estimate in each of the past five quarters by an average of 22 percent.

Click on the following link to see the Monthly Chart of NBL since March 2003 with 10-Month Moving Average: http://www.schaeffersresearch.com/wire?ID=13038 .

Select Sector SPDRs Utility Fund - Ranking 7.0

Sticking with the energy sector, the Select Sector SPDRs Utility Fund (AMEX:XLU) is battling resistance at the 30 level as it continues on its trek higher. The exchange-traded fund (ETF) has rallied along the support of its 10-week and 20-week trendlines since late May. Furthermore, the share have enjoyed the support of their ascending 10-month moving average, which they have not finished a month below since April 2003. Despite the technical strength of the sector, pessimism continues to blanket the ETF. XLU's SOIR checks in at 1.93, as puts nearly double calls in the front three months of readings. This ratio is also higher than 60 percent of all those taken over the past 52 weeks. Short interest for April also checks in at a hefty 18.8 million shares. With a short-interest ratio of 9.17, the security could benefit from a short-covering rally. This lingering pessimism against the ETF's strong technical backdrop has earned it a Scorecard ranking of 7.0 out of 10.

Click on the following link to see the Weekly Chart of XLU since May 2004 with 10-Week and 20-Week Moving Averages: http://www.schaeffersresearch.com/wire?ID=13038 .

SBC Communications - Ranking 0.0

SBC Communications (NYSE:SBC) has had a pretty terrible time of things recently. The shares have slid lower since tagging a near-term peak in October under resistance at their 10-week and 20-week moving averages. The stock is also meandering under long-term resistance at its 10-month and 20-month trendlines. Sentiment toward the telecommunications firm is somewhat mixed. Options speculators are extremely optimistic, with its SOIR of 0.70 in the seventh percentile. And while short interest jumped by 20 percent in April, this accumulation of bearish bets accounts for only 1.39 percent of the stock's total float. Meanwhile, Wall Street has nearly abandoned the stock. According to Zacks, four analysts rate SBC a "strong buy," 13 give it a "hold," and five award the shares a "sell." The stock's Equity Scorecard ranking rests at a paltry zero out of 10.

Click on the following link to see the Monthly Chart of SBC since October 2004 with 10-Month and 20-Month Moving Averages: http://www.schaeffersresearch.com/wire?ID=13038 .

For a complete list of the stocks on our High/Low Schaeffer's Equity Scorecard Filter, sign up for an unlimited access free trial to Schaeffer's Gold. http://www.SchaeffersResearch.com/redirect.aspx?CODE=PRGLD2M&PAGE=1 .

About Schaeffer's Investment Research (http://www.SchaeffersResearch.com)

Schaeffer's Investment Research, founded by Bernie Schaeffer in 1981, is a financial information and trading resources company. It publishes Bernie Schaeffer's Option Advisor, the nation's leading options subscription newsletter. The firm's contrarian approach focuses on stocks with technical and fundamental trends that run counter to investor expectations. The firm's website, http://www.SchaeffersResearch.com , is recognized as one of the leading information sources for stock and options traders and was cited as the top options website by both Forbes and Barron's. Click here for more details about Schaeffer's trading methodology: http://www.SchaeffersResearch.com/method.