Schaeffer's S&P 500 Index Hot Stocks Features Freeport McMoRan Copper & Gold, Federated Investors, Biomet, Stryker, and Zimmer Holdings.

CINCINNATI -- Among the stocks featured in the March 27 edition of Schaeffer's S&P 500 Index Hot Stocks are Freeport McMoRan Copper & Gold (NYSE:FCX), Federated Investors (NYSE:FII), Biomet (NASDAQ:BMET), Stryker (NYSE:SYK), and Zimmer Holdings (NYSE:ZMH). Schaeffer's S&P 500 Index Hot Stocks is just one of the many free market commentaries written everyday at www.SchaeffersResearch.com - the home of Bernie Schaeffer and Schaeffer's Investment Research. For additional information about this report or to have it delivered to you free via email every day click on the following link. http://www.schaeffersresearch.com/redirect.aspx?CODE=PRSHS12M&PAGE=1 .

Schaeffer's S&P 500 Index Hot Stocks for Monday, March 27, 2006:

A daily feature available on SchaeffersResearch.com is the "SPX Hot Stocks" column. Each afternoon, we will provide a list of the day's top-20 performing stocks in the S&P 500 Index (SPX - 1,301.85) as well as the bottom-20 names. Featured along with this table will be news that is moving some of the securities.

NOTE: Stocks trading under $5 per share have been eliminated from this listing of the top-20 and bottom-20 performing stocks.

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As we head into the final hour of trading today, the SPX has retreated from the breakeven point once again. Stocks have spent the day mixed thanks to a spate of nerves ahead of tomorrow's Federal Reserve decision on interest rates. In fact, the only index currently in positive territory is the Nasdaq Composite. Currently, 208 of the 500 SPX components (42 percent) are in positive territory.

Resting atop our list of top-performing stocks this afternoon is the curiously spelled Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold (NYSE:FCX). The driving influence behind the company's jaunt higher today is Citigroup's decision to reverse its bearish stance on several metals. The brokerage forecast tighter global supplies of copper and nickel, noting that these commodities (and aluminum and gold on a more "modest" level) are likely to benefit from the "supercycle" sweet spot. Citigroup stated that metals have withstood interest-rate concerns, cycling weakness in oil and gas prices, several rounds of profit-taking, and seasonal demand slowdowns. The brokerage's analyst noted that the "drumbeat of operating outages/shortfalls" could bring about a prolonged period of prices higher than $2.50 per pound for copper, more than seven dollars a pound for nickel, and more than $1.25 per pound for aluminum. This upgrade represents a shift in Citigroup's thinking, as it has been bearish on these metals for some time.

Federated Investors (NYSE:FII) received an upgrade from Bear Stearns this morning, and has parlayed the momentum into a gain greater than four percent. The brokerage upped FII to "outperform" from "peer perform" thanks to its "compelling valuation" and the chance that FII could merge with another asset manager. Bear Stearns also placed a 44-dollar year-end price target for fiscal 2006, hinting at an upside of 17 percent for FII. At the time I foraged for our hot-stocks data, FII was more than four percent higher thanks to this news.

Our final stock on the road higher is Biomet (NASDAQ:BMET). The company's co-founder and Chief Executive Officer Dane Miller announced his resignation and retirement today. The company's board then named Senior Vice President Daniel Hann, who serves as the company's general counsel, as interim CEO. So far today, BMET is more than two percent higher.

The two worst performers on the SPX have J.P. Morgan to thank. Both Stryker (NYSE:SYK) and Zimmer Holdings (NYSE:ZMH) were downgraded to "neutral" from "overweight." The firm noted that valuations are "reasonable" but that the smart move may be to take a "wait-and-see approach" on the two thanks to a decelerating growth environment and a lack of near-term catalysts. J.P. Morgan also noted a risk related to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' prospective payment system proposal for 2007 related to orthopedic surgery. SYK wears the unwanted mantle of the largest decliner on the day thanks to its drop greater than five percent; ZMH, meanwhile, has lost more than three percent.

Click the following link to see a Chart of the SPX 500 Index's Top-20 Percentage Gainers: http://www.schaeffersresearch.com/wire?ID=15645 .

Click the following link to see a Chart of the SPX 500 Index's Top-20 Percentage Losers: http://www.schaeffersresearch.com/wire?ID=15645 .

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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 .