Schaeffer's S&P 500 Index Hot Stocks Features Starbucks, Whirlpool, E.W. Scripps, Autodesk, and Tyco International.

CINCINNATI -- Among the stocks featured in the February 2 edition of Schaeffer's S&P 500 Index Hot Stocks are Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX), Whirlpool (NYSE:WHR), E.W. Scripps (NYSE:SSP), Autodesk (NASDAQ:ADSK), and Tyco International (NYSE:TYC). 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 Thursday, February 2, 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 - 1,269.89) 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.

The market was already headed lower thanks to weaker-than-expected earnings results and disappointing productivity data, then there was mid-morning speculation that the U.S. may be planning on raising the terror alert level (which the Department of Homeland Security has denied) and the losses accelerated. I guess you could say that the bulls came out, saw their shadow, and ran to hide. The question is now whether we will have six weeks of gains or six weeks of losses. I can't remember a day in my year-plus here at Schaeffer's where the number of rising stocks has been under 100, which has happened today. A mere 19 percent of the SPX components have advanced, that comes to 97 stocks, folks. Currently, the loss for the index stands at 0.90 percent.

You can't say that the bulls haven't had a bit of help from a nice venti frappe-mocha-latte-cino, or something like that, as Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) leads the way on our hot stocks list. While I may not know their menu by heart, I do know that the coffeehouse surprised the Street with a jump of 20 percent in first-quarter earnings. For the quarter, the cappuccino king earned 22 cents per share on sales of $1.93 billion. The consensus estimate was for earnings of 20 cents per share with sales of $1.93 billion. Holiday promotions and heavy gift card sales helped give SBUX its little extra jolt. On the news, the wizard of waking up shot more than 10 percent higher to a new all-time high.

Following SBUX higher is appliance maker Whirlpool (NYSE:WHR) and its gain of more than seven percent. The company posted fourth-quarter earnings of $1.83 per share, easily outpacing the Street's forecast for $1.70 per share. Sales for the company came in at $3.95 billion, ahead of the consensus' expected $3.83 billion. The company also noted that its plans to acquire rival Maytag (MYG) remain "on track" with a possible closing in the first quarter, depending on regulatory approval.

E.W. Scripps (NYSE:SSP) advanced more than four percent today, despite posting a fourth-quarter loss of $603,000 for breakeven per-share results. On an adjusted basis, SSP earned 54 cents per share, far ahead of the 49 cents per share expected by the Street. Revenue for the quarter increased 17 percent to $707 million.

Leading the plethora of shares moving lower is Autodesk (NASDAQ:ADSK). Two brokerages downgraded the company after checking it out and then questioning its potential to top financial estimates. Piper Jaffray and Lehman Brothers both downgraded the company, sending it more than six percent lower on the day.

Moving a little further down the list, we have Tyco International (NYSE:TYC), which has lost more than four percent after issuing disappointing first-quarter results. TYC posted earnings of 28 cents per share for the quarter, 39 cents per share after an adjustment for a tax-loss from the sale of its Plastics, Adhesives, and Ludlow Coated Products businesses. Analysts expected TYC to post earnings of 38 cents per share. TYC also saw sales of $9.71 billion in the quarter, short of the expected $9.81 billion. The conglomerate then forecast second-quarter earnings of 40 to 42 cents per share, short of the expected 47 cents per share.

Click the following link to see a Chart of the SPX 500 Index's Top-20 Percentage Gainers: http://www.schaeffersresearch.com/wire?ID=15152 .

Click the following link to see a Chart of the SPX 500 Index's Top-20 Percentage Losers: http://www.schaeffersresearch.com/wire?ID=15152 .

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About Schaeffer's Investment Research (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 .