Schaeffer's S&P 500 Index Hot Stocks Features Walgreen, Bausch & Lomb, Duke Energy, CenterPoint Energy, and Novell.

CINCINNATI -- Among the stocks featured in the June 2 edition of Schaeffer's S&P 500 Index Hot Stocks are Walgreen (NYSE:WAG), Bausch & Lomb (NYSE:BOL), Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK), CenterPoint Energy (NYSE:CNP), and Novell (NASDAQ:NOVL). Schaeffer's S&P 500 Index Hot Stocks is just one of the many free market commentaries written every day 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 Friday, June 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 - 1,284.47) 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.

U.S. stocks are trading lower heading into the final two hours of the week. May's weaker-than-expected jobs growth have sparked concerns over an economic slowdown from the investing community. Initially, the jobs report seemed positive as it suggested that the Fed may put a halt to its interest-rate hikes. However, a drop of 1.8 percent in U.S.-made factory goods fueled concerns that the economy may be slowing, and the ball of negativity was rolling from then on. Currently, the SPX is 0.1 percent lower as 60 percent of its components are in negative territory.

I have been into two separate Walgreen's (NYSE:WAG) stores this week to purchase Sudafed (one package for home, one for my desk) to fend off the effects of allergies and the plague and, assuming that I am not the only person in the U.S. suffering, I am sure that several of you have as well, it should come as no surprise that the company's same-store sales for May came in better than expected. The retailer saw same-store sales for the month increase 9.8 percent compared to expectations for an increase of 7.7 percent. WAG's total sales for the period came in at $4.13 billion compared to $3.6 billion a year earlier. Pharmacy sales accounted for 65.2 percent of WAG's total May sales. The company rests atop the SPX today with a gain greater than four percent.

While a daily chart of Bausch & Lomb (NYSE:BOL) looks like a stock that has walked off the edge of a cliff, it has found its way onto the positive side of the Mendoza Line this afternoon. BOL is nearly four percent higher this afternoon after Goldman Sachs upgraded the vicar of vision to "in-line" from "underperform." The brokerage noted that its recent customer survey suggests that the risk/reward profile for BOL is now more evenly balanced with market share declines reflected in the current price. Finally, Goldman Sachs noted that it sees limited upside for the stock thanks to a lack of catalysts during the next several quarters and put fair value on the shares at $52.

I was watching the local morning news and saw that the vaunted Cinergy Center (our downtown convention center) had its name changed to the Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) center, with appropriate signage installed yesterday. Of course, it would be Cincinnati-myopic of me to think this is the sole reason DUK is on the plus side of the SPX today. Yesterday, DUK announced that it signed a "memorandum of understanding" with CenterPoint Energy (NYSE:CNP) to develop the Mid-Continent Crossing pipeline. The new pipeline will run from the center of West Texas to Oakford/Delmont, Pa. and will offer the Midwest and Eastern markets access to natural gas. DUK is more than two percent higher this afternoon.

Turning to the "wrong side" of the SPX today, I find King Pharmaceuticals (KG) and its plunge greater than 5.5 percent. The pharmaceutical firm dropped after Banc of America Securities downgraded the firm to "sell" from "neutral." The brokerage cited concerns about competition in issuing the downgrade. Banc of America Securities also issued a price target of $13 for KG.

Novell (NASDAQ:NOVL) continues to wallow in the red this afternoon. Remember, the company posted second-quarter ex-items earnings of three cents per share yesterday. According to Thomson First Call, NOVL was expected to earn three cents per share on revenue of $278.4 million. The drop stems from NOVL's third-quarter earnings forecast of three cents per share. The company also forecast revenue between $239 million and $247 million. The consensus sets the earnings bar at four cents per share on revenue of $282.9 million in the quarter.

Click the following link to see a Chart of the SPX 500 Index's Top-20 Percentage Gainers: http://www.schaeffersresearch.com/wire?ID=16146

Click the following link to see a Chart of the SPX 500 Index's Top-20 Percentage Losers: http://www.schaeffersresearch.com/wire?ID=16146

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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.